Secrets Buried Deep
by AllHailMario
Summary: Where did he come from? Why did he look up to Greil so much? How did he join the mix? Just who is he? Nobody's known anything about Shinon's past...until his archenemy Ike pieces it together and finds more surprises than he ever could have anticipated.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:** In case you hadn't already guessed, this is a story describing Shinon's past. We never know a whole lot about the guy, as he refuses to talk to pretty much anyone, so my sister decided to write this story up, and I'm posting it here for her. It should explain a lot. I've read it all, and it's a great story. But don't take my word for it--read it for yourself....

--

_The sun's rays bear down on the boy's frail body, draining what little water he has left in his system through sweat. His legs tremble beneath him, threatening to give way at any second. Grunting and groaning to himself, the boy wills himself forward yet another step. He can make it. He does not yet know where he's going, but surely help will come somewhere and he must carry himself to that place._

_The boy's stomach grumbles awfully, and his mind is once again returned to food. He hasn't had a bite to eat in three days - except for that handful of berries he'd found in the dense, humid forest he'd just stumbled out of. He couldn't eat any more. The fruit was so bitter that he would have vomited it all if he'd continued._

_It was terrible, that forest. The boy is eternally grateful he finally made it out. He'd spent two full days trying to push through it and nearly didn't make it. On the morning of the second day, he'd been so exhausted and so sick that he could barely get to his feet. Yet his willpower was strong enough. In fact, his willpower is the only reason he's still standing._

_Looking around the town he now walks through, the boy wonders if exiting the forest really meant anything for him. There was no hope for him in the forest, and so far there appears to be none for him here either. Surely the people notice him. How can they not? The boy is highly aware of his staggering, his emaciated body, his limbs covered in old bruises. His eyes plead for help at each and every passerby. Yet each and every one has glanced at him, glared, then kept walking by._

_The boy normally would get angry. He should have known the inhabitants of Gallia would look down on him - a human boy. A dirty, filthy, ugly human boy. He would get angry. However, his body is just too weak to feel anything. Realizing that he's come to the end of his road, his knees finally give way and he falls to the ground._

_Each breath is heavy and full of pain. What a useless life he's lived - and such a short one, at that. He's never known what it's like to have parents who loved him. He's never played on the playground swings, laughing with the other children. He's never had a carefree childhood. Rage, pain, fear, and rejection is all he's ever known - and now it is all he will ever know. Nobody has stopped to help the collapsed boy, and he's sure no one will. They will leave him to die in the streets and clean up his body when someone complains about stepping over him._

_The boy closes his eyes and wonders how much longer the sun will torture him before taking his life. Slowly the seconds tick by…slowly…._

_So lost in himself, the boy doesn't notice at first when a large hand gently grasps his shoulder. He feels his body give a shake and finally looks up. His heart leaps into his throat when he sees the enormous man kneeling down next to him. The man could break one of his bones easily. Shuddering, the boy tries to sit up, tries to scoot away._

_Then he takes a closer look. The man doesn't look like a laguz. He has no tail, no furry ears, no cat-like markings. The man is a beorc, and his eyes show compassion._

"_You look hungry," the man says, pulling a sandwich out of a bag and dropping it in the boy's lap. _

_Surprised, the boy shoots an uneasy glance at the man. Sure, he's been tempted with food before. People would hold out a tasty morsel to him and jerk it away just when he reached for it, laughing and running away. He'd been humiliated far too many times that way. Still, no one has ever dropped the food in his lap and truly expected him to eat it. Slowly the boy picks up the sandwich, inspects it, subtly sniffs it to check for poison, then takes a bite. _

_Never in his life has a sandwich been so delicious. The mixture of meat and cheese swirls around his mouth, dancing on his taste buds, and before he realizes it, he's finished off the sandwich before the minute is up. The man laughs quietly, though not in a mocking way. He seems simply amused that the boy could eat so fast._

"_What's your name, son?" the man asks._

_The boy is eternally grateful for the food, but is still suspicious of the strange man. He eyes him cautiously before answering, "Why do you care?"_

_The man smiles and says, "You're a careful one. You must have had a tough life. How old are you, boy?"_

"_I'm ten," the boy replies slowly._

"_That's a ripe young age," the man says. "Well…you have my interest, son. How would a boy like you just stumble into a town like this? You won't find much help here from anyone else."_

_The boy gazes into the man's eyes. As cautious and careful as he wants to be, he can't deny the longing to be taken in. Silently his mind begs for the man to bring him to his house, at least for a week or two, just long enough to be fed and cleaned up for a bit. _

"_My name's Greil," the man introduces himself. "I live here in Gallia. I don't know you, I don't know why you're here, but I do know I can't just leave you out here to starve. Come on, boy. You could use a little TLC. I'll let you stay at my home for a little while."_

_The man called Greil stands up and holds out a gigantic hand to the trembling boy. He doesn't know whether he should trust Greil, but at this moment, there's not much else that he can do. His hand seems tiny as he places it in Greil's, who proceeds to pull him up to his feet and brings an arm around his back to help support him._

_Fortunately, Greil's home is not far off. The boy stumbles as he enters through the doorway, but Greil catches him. He steadies himself as best he can, then glances at the startled expression of the blue-haired lady standing in front of him. He notices that she is quite pretty, with soft eyes and a caring expression. He also notices the tiny baby she holds in her arms, short blue hair sprouting from the top of his head. The baby gives a sleepy glance at the boy before deciding there's nothing to look at and closes his eyes against his mother's chest._

"_Oh Greil, what happened to him?" the woman asks worriedly, looking over the thin boy._

"_He'd collapsed about a block from the house," Greil replies. "I figured we could take him in for at least a little while."_

"Certainly," Greil's wife says, smiling tenderly at the boy. "He already looks like he needs some rest. Come, I'll set up a bed for you…?"

_She pauses, not knowing the boy's name. Overwhelmed with the unexpected hospitality, the boy decides to throw all caution to the wind. He doesn't need it here. Already he feels safe, cared about - something he's never felt all his life._

"_Shinon," the boy says. "My name is Shinon."_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

The wind quietly blows against Ike's strong body, almost as if it were comforting him. Ike sighs, his eyes focused on his father's grave. It's been almost three years to the day when he died and it still feels like just yesterday. Yet in a way, it feels like it's been a hundred years, or even that his father never existed. _Death is a confusing thing, _Ike thinks to himself. _You died way too early, Father._

"Did Zelgius really have to kill Father just to prove he was better than him?" Ike's fifteen-year-old sister Mist asks softly.

Ike glances down at his sister. Her eyes are sad, but she isn't crying. At this point, Ike's sure she doesn't have any tears left. As she gets older, Ike fears that her pain is being replaced with anger. He hopes she doesn't become a hostile, bitter woman. She's held a grudge against Zelgius ever since she learned he was their father's killer. Ike mortally wounded Zelgius not two months ago, but it hasn't seemed to help Mist any.

"It's just something about men, I guess," Ike finally replies. "We always want to be better than someone, even if that means killing the other person."

"Men are stupid," Mist says.

Ike lets out a small laugh before agreeing, "Yes, we are. Don't ever get married, Mist."

"Well, I wouldn't go that far," Mist blushes and looks at the ground.

"Alright, who is it this time?" Ike asks, looking at his sister teasingly. "Is it Rolf? I mean, I know he's a year younger than you, but--"

"Don't be silly! Rolf and I are just friends, it's B--" Mist starts to say, then quickly catches herself.

Ike slowly grins before saying, "Well, well. I've only had two men in my company who's names started with the letter B, and Brom's already married."

"Oh, would you look at the time? I should get started on dinner," Mist checks her watch, then darts away before Ike can get a good look at her face. _So Mist has a crush on Boyd, huh, _Ike laughs to himself. _And Boyd secretly has a crush on Mist too. This is going to be interesting._

His laughter goes silent as his eyes travel back to his father's grave. Ike doesn't hold a grudge against Zelgius - he can understand the way he felt. Still, it doesn't seem fair that his father had to lose his life when he could have won easily. Sure, after Greil killed Ike's mother, he severed the tendons in his fighting hand, but if Greil had picked up the legendary sword Ragnell when Zelgius had tossed it to him, he definitely could have won. Instead he died and Ike was thrown into the position of commander prematurely.

"I've done well, Father," Ike speaks to the grave. "I defeated Mad King Ashnard, freed Crimea from Daein's grasp. And just now, I helped free Daein from the hands of Begnion. In fact…" - Ike gives a tiny laugh - "…I just saved the world, Father. Did you really know that I was capable of this? Were you truly sure that I was ready? Why did you wait so long to train me?"

A rustling sound causes Ike to stop and look to his right. His jaw clenches as he sees his smart-aleck archer staring at him, his flaming-red hair pulled back into its usual long ponytail. Normally Ike has more patience to deal with Shinon and his sarcastic tongue, but Shinon has just disturbed him at the wrong time.

"Why, yes, Shinon, I talk to dead people," Ike snaps. "It's one of my quirky habits. Maybe I'm schizophrenic. That's all the more reason for you to take over, isn't it?"

"I must have extreme short-term memory loss, because I don't recall me saying anything, your majesty," Shinon retorts, his expression unfazed at Ike's sudden insult.

"You don't understand anything, Shinon!" Ike's sharp voice turns into yelling. "My father was an honorable man, one of the best fighters in all of Tellius. When he died, it actually hurt. And it still hurts. Your stupid glares and smart mouth don't help anything, Shinon. If you really respected my father that much, you would have been fine with him making me commander. Fact is, the only person you've ever cared about is yourself. You're selfish and arrogant and my father knew that. It's your own personality that got you kicked out of the running to be commander, Shinon. I'm Greil's son, I'm commander, and you follow my orders. It's about time you accept that and keep your sniveling tongue to yourself."

Ike notices as Shinon's jaw clenches, his hands balling into fists. _What are you going to do, Shinon? Swing a punch at me? _Ike glares. _Go ahead. I'll have your arm chopped off before you even make contact._

Shinon's breathing goes shallow for a second or two, then he spits droplets of blood on the ground in front of him. Ike realizes that he must have chomped on his tongue in his anger. Shinon's glare meets Ike's again, then Shinon speaks firmly, more firmly than Ike imagined to come out of his mouth: "You are mistaken, Ike. _You're _the one who doesn't understand anything."

Ike simply leaves Shinon be as he turns and walks away. Ike stares after him, a little surprised. He expected Shinon to be outraged, or at least to show a little more emotion than he did.

Sighing, Ike turns and heads back to the kitchen. The cheerful attitudes of his other mercenaries will likely cheer him up.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"_Excellent, Shinon!" Greil praises, thumping the skinny boy on his lower back. "That was excellent. You'd be ready for mercenary work right now if perhaps you were a little more bulked up."_

"_It wasn't fast enough," Shinon frowns, staring at his hands in disgust. _

_It has been two years since Greil first took Shinon in. The original plan was to let him stay until he was healthy enough to send elsewhere, but it quickly became apparent that Shinon was going to be a permanent fixture. Both Greil and his wife Elena had become attached to the red-haired boy, how he was always hungry, how he slept so peacefully, how he clumsily tried to help Elena with the baby. They decided they just couldn't let him go._

_Now at twelve years old, Shinon's skill with a bow has startled and delighted Greil. Shinon is happy to see his caretaker excited at his precise shooting, but he himself is never satisfied. His technique isn't perfected yet. His motion isn't swift enough yet. And he never, never, never shoots fast enough._

"_What do you mean, it wasn't fast enough?" Greil stares at the young archer. "You prepared and shot that arrow at lightning speed, Shinon. That would have been a fatal shot and the enemy would have had no idea that you'd even drawn your bow."_

"_It wasn't fast enough," Shinon repeats, frustrated with himself._

_In a way, Shinon is not quite as angry at himself as he is with his father. After all, he's the reason Shinon has to perfect everything. His father had him shooting arrows at age five and pounded perfection on him. As Shinon got older, it became literal. His father's voice always came out in a scream: "That was too slow!" "You're clumsy!" "Are you ever going to learn or am I just wasting my time with a worthless whelp?" Firing the arrow too slow earned a shove. Missing the center of the target earned a harsh slap across the face. If Shinon were nervous and missed the target entirely, that earned a flogging. _

_Memories swirling in Shinon's mind, he whips out an arrow from his quiver and fires it immediately. It sails through the air and strikes the middle of the target, squeezed beside the previous arrow he'd shot._

"_It's not fast enough!" Shinon cries in anger, grabbing his hair. He quickly lets go, not wanting to pull it out. It's another thing his father said wasn't perfect. Shinon had always wanted to grow his hair long, but his father required his hair to be short. The more Shinon complained, the shorter it was cut. Now, under the care of Greil, Shinon can grow his hair as long as he wants to. Rage burning inside for his father, Shinon is determined to grow it out very, very long._

"_Why can't I do this?" Shinon wails, reaching for another arrow. His hand flies so quickly that Greil doesn't catch it before it fires another arrow, eliciting an agonized "It's never fast enough!" from the archer. _

"_Shinon, stop," Greil commands, grabbing Shinon's arms and turning the young archer towards him. Shinon looks at the ground, ashamed of his lack of ability. Greil has to repeat "look at me, Shinon" three times before Shinon finally lifts his head up to see Greil's face._

"_You're being impossible with yourself," Greil tells him sternly. "You're firing accurately at a blinding speed and you think you're too slow. Listen, I have always pushed my students to be the best that they can be, even beyond the limits they thought they had. I know what excellent fighting is, and I don't believe there's any possible way you can shoot faster than you already are."_

_Shinon believes there is. His father would be flying off the handle if he saw how slow his shots were._

"_You're only twelve years old and you have an extraordinary gift at the bow," Greil says, staring right into the boy's face. "You have to start believing in yourself, Shinon. These two years you've been living with us, I still have very little idea of your past. However, someone must have installed this unforgiving perfectionist streak in you, and you need to overcome it. See your ability for what it really is, Shinon. You're a fantastic archer."_

_As Greil pulls him into a manly hug, Shinon wishes deep down that Greil was his father. That baby Ike is a very lucky kid._


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

"A kidnapping?" Ike asks. "One of the richest guys in Crimea is asking _us _to look into a kidnapping?"

"He says the word is we're good," Ike's lance-knight Oscar replies. "And cheap."

"He said that?" Ike raises an eyebrow.

"Not the cheap part, but it was implied," Oscar says.

"Alright, fine, we'll do it," Ike sighs. "How can I possibly say no to a kidnapping?" Pausing for a moment, he asks, "Everybody's still eating in the dining hall, right?"

"I made enough dessert to go around twice," Oscar smiles, his eyes closing up like they always do during smiles. Admittedly, Oscar's strawberry pie is enough to die for, but Ike knows he has more important business than to get himself another slice. Oscar leads the way out of the kitchen and into the noisy dining hall. It's always amazed Ike how ten mercenaries can sound like a thousand people when eating.

"Alright, I need your attention, guys!" Ike calls, draining the noise down slowly. When he's sure all attention is on him, Ike proceeds: "Okay, Oscar was just delivered a letter. You know Dr. Ryan, the wealthy guy who lives in that huge mansion several miles away? His daughter Jalaine has just been kidnapped by bandits, who live around this area as a ransom note was sent to Dr. Ryan from a fort around here. He's agreed to pay us greatly to retrieve her and bring her back to him. We get a good night's rest tonight and head out early tomorrow. I'll explain any further details in the morning."

Immediately after acknowledging his command, the dining hall goes back to its usual noise. Mia and Mist discuss the shopping trip they had the day before, while Boyd and Rolf fling strawberry pie at each other while arguing. Titania has a cheerful discussion with Rhys, while Shinon tries to grab his wine bottle away from a tipsy Gatrie. Slipping away from the small crowd, Ike's dark mage friend Soren makes his way over.

"Do you need me to think up a strategy for you, Ike?" Soren asks, his face serious and expressionless as always.

"We just need to make sure we're ready for any possible scenario," Ike says. "We don't know for sure how many bandits there are. Could be a few, could be many, and they could be tougher than we expect. We have to be prepared for anything."

"I'll check our funds and see if we need restocking in any of our weaponry," Soren says, his dark eyes gazing deep into Ike's before turning around and heading out. Before exiting to the outdoors, Soren calls, "I'll tell Aimee you said hi."

"No, you will not!" Ike calls after him, shuddering at the thought of his obsessive not-so-secret admirer, Aimee the shop lady. He'd barely kept his sanity when he had to deal with her during the wars. Ever since the second one, he's had Soren go get his items and weaponry.

"Fine, keep that one, what do I care," Shinon growls, finally giving up on his tug-of-war with Gatrie over the wine bottle. Getting up, he heads towards the kitchen. Ike presumes he's off to grab himself another bottle. Shinon turns almost unbearably sluggish and snippy around the anniversary of Greil's death. Even though Ike had lost his temper earlier, Shinon really did have a great respect for Greil. Shinon's drinking flew nearly out of control the full year after Greil's death, but fortunately has calmed down dramatically. Nowadays, Shinon mostly abstains from alcohol - except around Greil's death.

"Hey, Shinon, lay off the wine," Ike says just before Shinon can enter the kitchen. "You've already had two whole bottles. We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow and I don't want you waking up with a hangover."

"Actually I just had a quarter of a bottle," Shinon glares. "Moron over there guzzled down the rest of it. Why don't you talk to _him _about waking up with a hangover?"

Ike glances over at Gatrie's flushed face, wincing as he shouts, "Git shommore, Shinon! Git shommore!"

"I'll deal with Gatrie in the morning," Ike says. "He's kind of hit-and-miss with the alcohol. You tend to go overboard around this time of year."

"I don't go overboard," Shinon retorts.

"Here, if you want something fruity, just have some more strawberry pie," Ike says, grabbing the last plate of it and handing it towards the marksman. Shinon keeps his eyes focused on Ike's, not even glancing at the treat.

"If I wanted some strawberry pie, I would have gotten some strawberry pie," Shinon says.

"Just take it, Shinon," Ike sighs. Shinon's jaw clenches for a second or two before slowly taking the plate of pie, his face clearly expressing that he doesn't want it. He starts to turn away before Ike swallows his pride and says, "Shinon, I'm sorry for the way I acted with you earlier. I was wrong to say those things about you. I know you respected my father."

Shinon barely turns his head at Ike's apology, but still pauses.

"Why have you always hated me?" Ike murmurs a question he's forever longed to know the true answer to.

Shinon glances at Ike, replies "I haven't _always_ hated you," then slowly returns to his seat beside Gatrie. Ike merely stares after Shinon, wondering how much more a mystery he can get. First it's "Ike, you don't understand anything", now it's "I haven't always hated you."

_How much of him do I not understand?_

Ike sighs as Gatrie claps Shinon on the back and laughs right in his ear, which provokes Shinon to mash the piece of pie in Gatrie's face.

_At least he's semi-predictable._


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

"_We'll be back soon," Elena had said._

"_Soon" has turned into four hours._

"_When's Mommy and Daddy coming back?" five-year-old Ike asks, propping his elbows on Shinon's legs._

"_Should be any time now, Ike," Shinon says, sitting wearily in the chair and thumping the newborn baby on the back to get her to calm down. Baby Mist's crying is not quite as loud as Ike's was when he was her age, but Shinon still tries all the techniques he knows to soothe her. _

_He never could have predicted it in himself, but Shinon has come to realize that he has a major soft spot for children. Perhaps it's the desire to give them the childhood he never had. Perhaps it's the way they look up to a "grown-up" and are so eager to follow instruction. Perhaps it's the fact that they're so accepting and don't mind if they accidentally know the one secret that could ruin his entire life._

_Shinon tries not to think about it. If anybody knew his secret, if anybody were able to see it, it would be the end for him. Greil would probably throw him right out, destroy the one dream that Shinon has._

_It's not a humongous dream. It shouldn't be too hard to fulfill - and Shinon is very well on his way. Greil has spoken about moving to Crimea soon and starting his own mercenary group - Crimea is in need of one. Yet Greil is already an older man, and he would need to give up his commandership to someone, particularly someone he considered to be his son._

_Greil and Shinon have that father-son relationship, even if not biologically. Shinon respects him as a father and Greil loves Shinon as a son. Greil, a retired Rider of Daein, has done some training for potentials he hopes to add to his group. So far it's only Shinon and a pretty young woman by the name of Titania. _

_If Shinon were to inherit the mercenary group, it would fulfill him, he's sure of it. All his childhood was spent being shoved down, smacked around, told he was worthless. If Shinon were to become commander, he would no longer be worthless. He would be commander! Everyone would look up to him and respect him._

"_Why are you smiling, Shinon?" Ike asks, his blue eyes peering right up into Shinon's._

_Shinon, not realizing his imagination is showing through his face so much, replies, "I, uh, I was thinking about your Mommy and Daddy getting here. They should be here soon."_

"_I'll go watch for them!" Ike says excitedly, dashing out of the room, Shinon supposed to the big front window near the door. Shinon laughs to himself, then looks down into the huge blue eyes of Mist._

"_You stopped crying," Shinon says._

_Immediately Mist's face begins to twist up._

"_Oh, come on, let's not start this again," Shinon sighs, laying her head against his shoulder and rubbing her back. Mist sputters slightly, but remains quiet. Shinon sits with her in silence for a moment or two, thinking. After a little while, Shinon glances at Mist's face and finds her fast asleep. A smile tugs at the corners of his mouth. She's quite adorable. Shinon's never really been an affectionate person - no one has ever been affectionate to him - but there's something about a sleeping baby's forehead that simply screams to be kissed. Shinon places a tiny peck on Mist's head and swallows as he looks into her peaceful face._

"_You and your brother are both lucky, you know that?" Shinon whispers. "The great Daein Rider Greil is your father, and you have a loving mother. You're going to have a great childhood, lots of fun…all that good stuff."_

_Sighing, Shinon gazes across the room. There's one more reason Ike and Mist are so lucky - a reason that would thoroughly destroy all hope for Shinon if Greil ever found out._


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

"I counted attendance and one of us is missing," Soren says wearily. "See if you can guess which one."

Ike heaves a sigh, rolls his eyes, then glances over at Shinon. "Go see if you're able to get the lug out of bed."

"If you're so concerned about it, why don't you get him out of bed?" Shinon says, smoothing out his ponytail.

"Because I ordered you to," Ike says as patiently as he can. "Now go do it."

Shinon shoots an old familiar glare at Ike, but gets up and heads over to Gatrie's tent. Ike takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. He'd gotten barely enough sleep last night and really doesn't need Shinon trying his patience this morning.

"Alright guys, basically we're just going after the bandits and fighting them," Ike announces to the remaining portion of the group. "There's no special tactics or strategies we're using. Just be prepared for whatever happens. We don't know how many bandits there are or how strong they are, so be on your best guard and keep Dr. Ryan's daughter as a first priority. It's about a twenty minute walk to get to the fort where they're holding her. Soren should have checked up on supplies last night, so our weaponry should be all set."

"I've restocked where we needed it," Soren confirms.

"Alright, so that's basically it," Ike finishes. "Does anybody have any questions?"

"Why did we have to get up so _early_?" Gatrie's moan arrives, his sluggish body being tugged by an irritated Shinon. "I have such a headache."

"Maybe if you didn't drink all my wine, you wouldn't have this problem," Shinon grumbles.

"Alright, if there are no questions, we can go ahead, get our gear, and start moving," Ike interrupts their argument. "Let's go."

It takes a good twenty minutes to finally get everyone (particularly Gatrie) ready, but finally Ike's mercenary group is on the move. They begin their march through the hillsides of Crimea. Soren had predicted after twenty minutes they'd arrive at the fort named in the ransom letter.

The sunny sky and gentle breeze helps loosen Ike's mood a bit. Good weather often lets him reflect on things, like the fact that he's still living, carrying on his father's legacy. He inherited this mercenary group, and Ike's really grown to love his companions. Sure, some of them drive him nuts from time to time, but even Shinon has at least some likeability. Somehow, it feels like things were once different between the two of them. Ike is sure he's known Shinon for a while, but exactly how long?

Ike glances at his marksman, who walks ahead of him. He notices a small bag tied around his waist and hanging down by his left leg. Ike sighs when he realizes it takes the shape of a wine bottle. Stepping up his pace, Ike catches up to Shinon and scoops up the bag.

"And just what were you planning on using this for?" Ike asks, breaking the tie around Shinon's waist with one swift motion.

Shinon grits his teeth and sighs before answering, "I was going to drink a quarter of it and give the rest to Gatrie again."

"Drinking doesn't help you in anything, Shinon," Ike says. "I know you took my father's death harshly, but so did I. He was my father. Drinking's not going to solve anything for me and it certainly has never solved anything for you."

"Perhaps I have more that I'd like to forget than you," Shinon mumbles, walking faster. Ike notices and picks up his pace as well.

"When did you first join the mercenaries?" Ike asks. As long as Shinon's been around, Ike really knows very little about the archer's past. He's never really spoken about it. Of course, Ike has tried to avoid his snippy attitude as much as possible and never asked him about it. Now he's interested.

"Titania and I were there the day Greil started the mercenaries," Shinon puts bluntly.

"So you knew my father over ten years ago," Ike ponders. "The mercenaries started when I was ten. How long before the mercenaries did you know my father?"

"I first met Greil twenty years ago," Shinon mumbles disinterestedly. "You were two months old at the time."

Ike pauses for a moment, but when Shinon keeps walking, Ike trots to catch up. "You've known me ever since I was a baby? How come I don't remember you from that far back?"

"You have a highly selective memory, Ike," Shinon growls. "If you aren't fond of someone, you just forget all about them. Never mind the fact that I saved your stinking life the night Greil went berserk."

"You what?" Ike asks, grabbing Shinon's arm and halting him. "You were there the night my father….?"

"Hey, if you want details, go talk to Titania," Shinon says, yanking his arm out of Ike's grip. "I'm done talking."

Ike lets Shinon walk ahead, as it seems he doesn't want to talk about it. If it really were as horrifying as had been described, Shinon must be bitter thinking about it. Ike recalls the memory of seeing his mother murdered by his father in his insanity. He doesn't remember anything more of that night.

Giving a side-glance at Titania, Ike has a feeling he may be asking her a lot of questions later on.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

"_Guess what, Shinon? I made a new friend!" Ike bounces excitedly over to the long-haired archer. _

"_Oh, you did?" Shinon asks, walking back towards the house._

"_Yeah! He was really skinny and had long black hair and was kind of shy, but I gave him my lunch and he said he'd come back tomorrow!" Ike grins. "I still don't know what his name is, but-"_

"You gave him your lunch? What do you think you're going to eat now?" Shinon asks. "I'm not making you another sandwich." Seeing Ike's mouth start to open, Shinon interrupts, "And I'm not buying you a blueberry tart either."

"_Aw, Shinon!" Ike whines. "But it's really good and-"_

"_You'll have to whine to your mother and see if she buys you one," Shinon says. "I'm not going to get in trouble for buying you sweets for lunch."_

_Ike pouts for a while, but then continues to chatter about his new friend while Shinon half-listens. Most of the time Ike's "new friends" are imaginary anyway. However, this new friend sounds sort of interesting - perhaps because Ike found him almost the same way Greil found Shinon. Small, alone, starving…Shinon wonders if perhaps he should go investigate later to see if he can find the boy. Greil probably wouldn't mind taking in another one._

_As they approach the house, Ike tugs on Shinon's shirt, "Hey, Shinon! Can I go play on the swings over there? I promise I won't go anywhere else!"_

_Shinon glances down into Ike's pleading eyes, then over at the wooden swings hanging from a large oak tree. It's within sight of the house and Ike's never been in any danger so far. Shinon nods, tells him "But only for a few minutes, okay?", then watches as Ike dashes over to the swings. Laughter rings out as Ike pushes himself on the wooden swing. Warmth circles around in Shinon's stomach momentarily, but is quickly replaced with a sour feeling. He wishes he could have had a carefree childhood like that. His father never allowed him to play on the swings - and even if he had, the neighborhood kids would have destroyed his fun anyway. _

"_Shinon!" a voice calls out. _

_Shinon breaks out of his thoughts and turns around to see Elena standing in the doorway. Her normally-gentle face seems highly concerned about something. Shinon frowns. The worry lines on Elena's forehead just don't look right._

"_Shinon, can you help me look for the medallion?" Elena asks. "I must have misplaced it somewhere. It's still in its wrapping, I'm sure of it, but…I have no idea where I must have set it down. I don't remember getting it out of its drawer, but it's not there now. I might have placed it somewhere absent-mindedly, I've been so busy."_

_Shinon nods, giving one last glance at Ike before disappearing into the house with Elena. The medallion is not just a family heirloom - it's something much, much bigger. Shinon isn't sure that he'll completely understand. He's only seen it out of its wrapping once or twice. He reached for it one time and Elena smacked his hand away, commanding him never to touch it. She'd said that if anyone besides her handled it, it could literally make them go insane. Normally Shinon's curiosity would have given him cause to ignore Elena's plea, but she'd felt so strongly about it that Shinon has obeyed without question._

"_I've checked every room, but it's always best to double-check," Elena mumbles, peering behind each and every obstacle in the kitchen area. "If you find it out of its wrapping, please don't touch it, Shinon."_

_Shinon glances into corners and edges, realizing that this is a rather big deal, even though Elena's trying not to make it sound so. If someone has stolen the medallion, any number of things can happen. What sorts of things could people do while insane? How many people could they hurt? _

_Shinon peers into a bedroom he hasn't checked - the one belonging to Ike and his little sister Mist, who is now four years old. It astounds Shinon just how fast time has flown. It's been nine years since Greil first adopted him. The nineteen-year-old Shinon now is certainly not the same scrawny ten-year-old kid Greil first met._

"_Hey, Mist," Shinon says, kneeling down next to Mist, who is playing quietly by herself. "Have you seen a medallion around here?"_

"_What's a medareeyon?" Mist asks, her large innocent eyes gazing into Shinon's. _

"_It's sort of like a necklace," Shinon tries to explain in terms a four-year-old would understand. "It's round and it looks really pretty, almost like gold."_

_Mist's eyes brighten in recognition and immediately dashes across the room to bring Shinon her "medallion" - a simple round wooden block with a string tied around it to make it a necklace. Shinon laughs to himself, says, "It looks sort of different than this, but okay," then freezes. _

_Something's not right. Something's happening outside._

_The villagers are screaming._

_Shinon hadn't noticed it before. How long has there been a panic? The shouts sound terrified. Slowly Shinon steps out of Mist's room, wondering if perhaps a riot is occurring - there have been a couple in his time here. He walks around the corner, finding Elena peering out the window. Apparently she's heard the commotion as well._

"_Oh, goddess," Elena's voice comes out small and faint, and Shinon just now notices her face is completely white. "Oh, goddess! Gawain! Stop!" _

_Her body knocking Shinon out of the way, Elena dashes at alarming speed out of the house. Immediately Shinon's heart begins to pound. Elena hardly gets frantic about anything. What could Greil possibly be doing? Shinon glances out the window and nearly collapses at the scene._

_Elena is rushing straight towards Greil, who has turned into a complete madman. In one hand he holds a sword. In his other hand he clutches none other than the medallion. Shinon's stomach violently twists as he watches his loving, caring father figure swinging his sword ferociously at other villagers, landing direct hits on several of them. Several bodies have already littered the streets, with widows wailing over them, gazing in terror at the murderer._

_And now Elena is trying to grab the medallion from his hand._

"_What's going on?" Mist's tiny voice speaks. A wave of nausea slams into Shinon as he turns around and sees Mist's curious face peering up at him. _

"_Mist, get back into that bedroom and you stay there," Shinon barks, grabbing Mist immediately and nearly shoving her back into her room. "You stay there until I come back to get you, you understand? Stay there!" _

_Mist's face twists up in confusion and hurt at Shinon's harsh tone, but Shinon doesn't have time to explain to her. He slams her door, prays that she will obey his orders, and runs for the front door. Surely Greil will listen to reason. Surely the voice of his wife and his son will bring back a little sanity, enough to make him stop killing. Shinon still cannot believe it's really his father ruthlessly taking so many lives._

_He watches from the front doorway in horror as Greil throws his wife away like an old rag doll, not even watching as she slams into the ground. Elena gets back up and continues to run after Greil as he slays more innocent people. Shinon cannot imagine her bravery. _

"_Father?" a small voice squeaks. _

_Shinon glances at the street, his heart leaping into his throat when he sees Ike standing there, watching his father. Shinon starts to call for him, then gasps in horror as Greil's head turns to look at his young son. His eyes are cold and show no signs of mercy. Greil takes three large steps towards his boy. Shinon knows that Ike will not run from his father, and that his father will not spare Ike's life if he reaches him. _

_Dashing out into the street, Shinon slams into Ike's body, scooping him up and charging away from Greil. He hears his angry roars, feels the wind of the blade slicing toward him. Greil is attempting to kill the child he once saved. Shinon's legs feel like they're made of lead as he tries with all his might to get away. If Shinon gets cut down, Ike is certainly next._

"_Greil, stop it! Give that to me!" Elena's voice shrieks. Shinon hears a scuffle. Reluctantly he turns around, then slows to a halt as he sees Elena and Greil struggling for the medallion. Elena almost has it…almost…._

_In one second, one traumatizing second, all the breath is taken from Shinon's body. He feels as if his spirit has left his body and is now watching from another place, another time. Just as Elena finally takes the medallion from Greil's hand, the sword plunges through her chest, slicing through to the other side of her thin body._

_Elena's face displays shock more than anything, and to Shinon's surprise, Greil's face displays the same. Elena gasps for air, then forces a painful smile._

"_I will always love you, Gawain," she breathes before falling to the ground, never to rise again. _

_Greil, only seconds after the death of his wife, loses consciousness as well. Shinon doesn't know what to do, what to think, even what to feel. Is Elena really dead? What about Greil? Did everything really just happen? Did that killing spree really happen? Surely it must be a dream…_

_Looking down, Shinon sees Ike still in his arms. He'd forgotten all about him. Elena's death had only taken a few seconds, but it felt like long hours of eternity to Shinon. Something registers in his brain that Ike has also seen the whole event. Shinon doesn't know what that means. Does Ike really know what happened? What is Shinon supposed to do about it?_

"_General Gawain!" a deep voice gasps. Shinon glances to his right and sees a couple of men running towards Greil and Elena's bodies. One of the men is very large, very strong, with short hair and a nice face. The other is taller, thinner, and has very long black hair, even longer than Shinon's. The second man's eyes gaze at Greil for a moment, then glance over at Shinon. He gives an expression that is not easily understood. _

_Shinon, not knowing what to believe, drops Ike and dashes back into the house._

Hey, guys, this is AllHailMario's sister, a.k.a. author of the story. Here's another chapter, just because I feel so guilty about not updating sooner. So busy! I've also been working on another story, which will be posted shortly!


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

"I want to go back to Daddy and you will take me right now!" Jalaine shrills, stamping her foot and glaring vehemently at Ike.

"We'll go back in a moment," Ike says, trying to keep his voice level. "We have certain procedures to go through, just to make sure we're all okay, how our weapons are doing, stuff like that. We'll be back at your father's house by sunset, I promise."

"I want to go now!" Jalaine whines, crossing her arms and pouting.

Ike ignores her and examines his mercenaries. They all look to be in fantastic condition - which is not surprising. Fighting the bandits was a joke. They had little to no skill at fighting - Ike is sure that even prissy Jalaine could have taken them down if she really tried - and several scattered when they saw the mercenaries approaching. A couple of them really fought back hard, but otherwise Ike's group had no problem taking care of them. Rhys walks around, healing the minor scrapes of the battle.

The only aggravating part of this fight is Jalaine herself. Ike knows not every rich kid is a spoiled little brat, but Jalaine certainly is. Just the look on her face when she saw the "band of merry men" her Daddy sent to retrieve her set Ike off. Ever since, she has been whining, complaining, and otherwise showing complete immaturity. It takes all Ike's strength not to convince Soren to fling her away with a powerful wind tome.

"Surely you know some chant to make her shut up," Ike sighs as Soren approaches him.

"Unfortunately I don't, but we do have rope, and I'm sure someone would happily donate a small portion of their cape to gag her with," Soren states, a small corner of his lips arching up. Ike smirks, considering the possibility. Returning to his serious nature, Soren reports, "Nobody's been injured beyond a few cuts, we're all fairly energized still, our weaponry looks good, and we even collected a small bit of gold."

"For what it's worth, I hope Dr. Ryan pays us considerably," Ike says, glancing at Jalaine slapping at Rhys, who is likely only inquiring if she's hurt.

"I just hope she finds her way over to Shinon," Soren says. "A few words from him ought to put her in her place."

Ike laughs. _No, a few words from him ought to destroy her and totally crush her soul, but she'd so deserve it, _he thinks. He'd never say so out loud, being an honorable man carrying an honorable legacy, but he's entitled to his own thoughts.

"I believe all our preparations are complete," Soren finishes. "Whenever you want to start heading back, we can."

"The sooner we drop the girl off, the better," Ike says. "Let's go ahead and get going." 

Ike's troops, weary mostly from Jalaine rather than the battle, begin to make their way back. From where they are, it's about a forty-minute walk to Dr. Ryan's house. Ike hopes to get there as soon as possible.

Although the battle had distracted him for a short time, Ike remains curious about Shinon's past. It surprises him how very little he knows about it - and by Shinon's word, Ike's known him his whole life. _He even claims to have saved my life on the day my father went mad, _Ike thinks to himself. _He saw everything. _

Ike glances back at Shinon, wondering if now would be a good time to ask him if he could describe that day. He almost laughs as he sees Jalaine snipping at him. Shinon's irritated expression shows that there's not much more he'll take, especially from a whiny girl.

"I seriously cannot believe my Daddy would hire a bunch of ragtag mercenaries to rescue me!" Jalaine goes on. "I mean, what kind of crazy dysfunctional group are you? First, that fat guy over there tried to chat me up, then that silly priest tries to act all saintly by 'checking my wounds', and you-"

"Alright, so here's how it works, Little Miss Prissy," Shinon interrupts, giving her a glare that would make the late Mad King Ashnard cringe. "You're idiot enough to get yourself kidnapped, so your father paid us to come get you. We run the bandits off because you're too weak and stupid to run from them yourself, and all we've gotten in thanks is your constant running mouth. I've served in two wars to help save little whiners like yourself, so therefore I'd say my skill at the bow is top-notch. I never miss a target and if you keep complaining, my next target is going to be your mouth. Understood?"

Ike turns away and snorts back laughter as Jalaine's face turns ghastly white. Normally Ike would apologize for Shinon's smart mouth, but this time he doesn't feel a need to. For the next twenty minutes, there's silence from behind.

What was it that Shinon had said earlier, though? He hadn't wanted to talk about the night Ike's father went berserk, and he said…what did he say?…

"You look concerned about something, Commander," Titania rides up to Ike's side and hopping off her horse to give it a rest.

_Oh yeah. He said to talk to Titania if I wanted details._

"Not really concerned, just thinking about something," Ike says. "I wanted to ask you a couple questions anyway."

"Shoot," Titania says with her typical gentle smile.

"I was talking to Shinon earlier, and he told me that you and he had joined the Greil Mercenaries around the same time," Ike explains. "So you two have known each other for a while, right?"

Titania pauses for a moment, sighing as she stares ahead. Ike assumes she's recalling some memories. _Does Titania remember more about Shinon than I do? How could I possibly have known him my whole life and not remember anything? _

"Shinon was a little different back then," Titania states simply and quietly. "You could say he was the very first member of the Greil Mercenaries. He was Deputy Commander before I was."

"He was?" Ike looks at his deputy commander in surprise, then glancing back at his expert marksman. Shinon is staring at the ground, kicking some clumps of dirt as he comes by them. After a few seconds, Shinon looks up to meet Ike's gaze. Ike looks away from his archer's bitter eyes. He wonders if Shinon knows they're talking about him.

"I wouldn't suggest talking to him about it though," Titania mumbles. "He, um…he just doesn't like to talk about it."

Ike wonders when it was that Titania took Shinon's place as deputy commander.

"Shinon said he was there the night my father took the medallion," Ike says instead. "The night he went berserk. He told me I should ask you about the details…were you there too?"

Titania looks at Ike strangely, then half-glances back at Shinon.

"No, I wasn't there, but…" Titania starts, then pauses for a moment.

"But what?" Ike probes.

"I…had become good friends with Greil around that time," Titania says, looking down. "So obviously I knew your mother, you, and Shinon as well. I…I don't know exactly what Shinon saw. I know that he watched the entire thing unfold, at least from what Greil told me. Shinon's never spoken about it in detail. I think the important thing, though, is the way Shinon took care of you and Mist after Greil…after Elena died."

"Shinon took care of us?" Ike chuckles. "That's almost like an oxymoron, isn't it?"

"Shinon was a lot different then," Titania sighs. "Greil told me Shinon had lived a rough life before he adopted him as a son."

"He what?" Ike stops walking and turns to look at her. "Shinon was…"

"After your mother's death, Greil could hardly stand himself," Titania says. "He couldn't possibly live his normal life, at least not then. He had to escape to seclusion for a while - one month, in fact. You and your little sister were both Shinon's responsibility in that month. I came over to help sometimes, but you were primarily in Shinon's care."

Ike's head is swimming. Greil considered Shinon his son? Shinon saved Ike's life from his father when he went mad? Shinon even took care of him and Mist while Greil was trying to gather himself again? Two simple questions has turned into a thousand more, and Ike ponders them in silence all the way to the mansion of Dr. Ryan.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

"_Shinon?" a small blue-haired boy slowly slides onto the cushion next to Shinon. His eyes are curious, but he proceeds carefully. Shinon tries to lift his expression, tries not to let Ike see his inner pain. Yesterday came and went in a flash, yet the memory will live on forever in Shinon's mind. In one moment, everything was fine. Shinon was simply watching Ike play on the swing-set. In the next moment, chaos ensued. Greil went mad, Shinon had to save Ike's life, and Elena perished. _

_Elena…the sweet mother-figure that Shinon had grown to love and look up to, now cold and dead. She no longer exists anymore. Perhaps the hardest part is that it wasn't by the hand of an evil man, but by her own loving husband. Greil, Shinon's hero, had killed her and dozens of others ruthlessly._

"_Shinon, can I ask you something? Please?" Ike asks quietly, gently touching Shinon on the shoulder. _

"_What, Ike?" Shinon says, sounding more irritated than he means to sound. He can't deny his moodiness, but his nine-year-old "brother" doesn't deserve to hear it._

"_W-where did Mother go?" Ike asks. "I don't know where she went. I asked Father, but he said I shouldn't talk to him about it…Is Mother in trouble?"_

_Shinon stares at the boy for a moment or two, not daring to open his mouth, not knowing what will come tumbling out. So many conflicting emotions are whirling around in his stomach. He cannot describe the intense urge to mourn for Elena, cannot even think about her for too long. Yet he has suddenly become angry. First Greil kills his wife, now he expects Shinon to explain it to his children? That's not his responsibility. Greil's burden does not belong on Shinon's shoulders. _

_Shinon feels the strong urge to punch something._

_Yet he remains calm, clenches his jaw for a moment longer, then finally releases his voice stiffly: "Mother…got sick. She got sick very fast and…now she's gone to heaven."_

_Ike freezes, staring helplessly into Shinon's eyes. _

"_Don't look at me like that!" Shinon suddenly snaps. "It was…it was the will of the goddess. Your mother is very happy in heaven and that's all there is to say."_

"_But…but she didn't even…she didn't even say goodbye!" Ike croaks, his baby blue eyes welling up with tears. Shinon can hardly stand it anymore. He just wants to be anywhere else except here. He doesn't want to comfort Ike. He doesn't want to care for Mist. He doesn't want to even look at Greil's face. The only thing he wants to do is run away. He wants to run where his current situation can't follow, and where a new life will take him in._

_Shinon realizes he's felt this way before. He felt this way nine long years ago. He had been starved by his father, forced to stay up late and wake up early. Hungry and exhausted, Shinon hadn't been able to see straight to accurately hit his targets with his arrows. Enraged, his father had taken the bow and beat him senseless with it. When the bow snapped, his father beat him with the broken pieces. It was on that day Shinon decided to run for it. There had to be a better life for him somewhere._

_How can he possibly feel the same way now? Greil has never beat him with anything. He has never insulted him. He has never dehumanized him. _

_Was Elena's death really Greil's fault? Anybody could have picked up the medallion. Anyone could have created all that havoc. Shinon takes a deep breath. Greil did not cause Elena's death. It was the medallion. It was only the medallion._

_A deeper understanding fills Shinon's mind. Of course Greil isn't able to tell his children about the death of their mother. Shinon can't imagine the level of guilt and sorrow Greil must be feeling right now. He'd foolishly touched the medallion, and it was by his hand that his beloved wife perished._

"_Mother's gone now, but she's still watching over you," Shinon says to the now-sobbing Ike. _

"_She was fine yesterday morning!" Ike cries. "I-I don't even remember her getting sick. I don't remember her dying!"_

_Shinon closes his eyes. That long-haired man yesterday had a dramatic personality switch after Shinon had dashed back inside the house. He turned gentle with Ike, had even cast a spell on him to make him forget what he'd seen. Shinon almost wishes the long-haired man had done the same for him._

_Another curious thing was when Mist ran outside and picked up the medallion. It had no effect on her - just like it had no effect on Elena. Mist now wears the medallion around her tiny neck. Shinon hopes it will be safe there. He prays that he will never have the urge to touch it._

_It takes fifteen minutes for Ike's crying to calm down. Shinon sits with him until it's completely done. Sniffing, Ike asks, "What's going to happen now?"_

"_We're all going to be fine," Shinon lies convincingly. "After a little while, Father won't be sad anymore and we're…going to be fine."_

"_You really think so?" Ike peers up._

"_If I didn't think so, I wouldn't have told you, Ike," Shinon huffs. "I don't like repeating mys-"_

"_I love you, Shinon," Ike says, throwing his arms around Shinon's narrow waist and burying his face in his chest. "You always tell the truth and I can always count on you! I'm so glad you're my big brother, I don't know what I'd do without-"_

"_Hey, Ike, stop clinging to me like a lost puppy," Shinon grimaces, thinking about how disgusting his shirt's going to be with Ike's tears and snot on it. "Ike! Goodness gracious…"_

_Shinon sits stiffly as Ike continues to clutch onto him, his muffled voice chanting, "Imuvoo, Imuvoo, Imuvoo!" Finally he allows himself to embrace Ike back. He's gotten better at showing affection over the years, but suddenly he feels as awkward as he did when Greil first adopted him. Shinon starts to get irritated. He's nineteen-years-old, for crying out loud. A mature adult. He shouldn't be feeling like a stupid ten-year-old kid._

"_Shinon," a deep voice speaks._

_Startled, Shinon twists around to see Greil standing behind the couch. His stomach drops to his knees. Greil's face is distorted with anguish and misery. He doesn't even try to hide it from his young son Ike. The small blue-haired boy glances once at his father, then turns away. _

"_Shinon, can I talk to you alone for a second?" Greil asks._

"_Of course," Shinon swallows, squirming out of Ike's arms and following Greil into his bedroom. The large bed makes Shinon sick. It's no longer necessary - Greil will be sleeping alone from now on. Greil closes and locks the door behind him. Shinon has a feeling Greil's about to tell him something important._

"_Shinon, you know I've done a lot of training with you," Greil begins in a low voice. "You've grown into a very strong young man…a lot stronger than I was at your age."_

_Shinon looks at the floor. This kind of flattery somehow doesn't seem appropriate now._

"_I know you have the power and ability to protect my two young children," Greil says. "Shinon, I…I have to ask a favor of you."_

"_Yeah?" Shinon stammers, unable to think of anything smarter to say._

"_I…cannot…I have to leave for the time being," Greil says, closing his eyes. "I…have done the most ugly thing. I have slaughtered my own wife…and almost took the lives of both my sons. I cannot bring myself to ask for your forgiveness right now…I have to go somewhere alone. Ike and Mist shouldn't have to see me like this."_

"_I understand," Shinon says, slowly realizing what this means for him. Greil has to get away from all this, escape from the evil he's done. He is unable to properly care for his young children. Greil's responsibilities around the house - as well as Elena's - now belong to Shinon for a little while. _

"_I don't know how long I will be gone," Greil sighs. "I won't come back before I know I'm ready…I trust you to take care of Ike and Mist. I'll leave all the money here with you. Please watch over them…they really look up to you."_

"_You can trust me," Shinon says. _

_Greil sighs, smiles wearily, and places a heavy hand on Shinon's shoulder._

"_I know I can," Greil says. "You're my eldest son, how could I not?"_

_The emotions of the room are thick and heavy, yet Shinon still smiles at Greil's compliment. He's always thought of Greil as his father. It feels good to have him actually call him his son. _

"_You're a fantastic leader, Shinon," Greil smiles. "You'll make an excellent deputy commander, once I get that mercenary group started - and once I retire, you'll be an excellent commander."_

_Shinon's heart skips a couple of beats. He'd always sort of assumed he'd be given the role of commander once Greil retired, but Greil had never actually said so. Now it's certain. Once the mercenary group gets started, he'll be Greil's most trusted fighter. Everyone will look up to him, everyone will respect him, everyone will follow his orders. He will be competent, strong…he will be commander._

"_You promise?" Shinon asks. He has to be certain. Too many people have broken their word to him. Too many people have given him something, only to take it back, laughing at him for believing he could actually keep it._

"_Of course," Greil answers. "I can't think of anyone else I'd rather pick."_

_Shinon allows a small smile, even though inside he's ecstatic. Funny how his emotions are so easily turned. Perhaps he should be feeling guilty about being this happy during such an unhappy time. Is he insulting Elena's death by this?_

_He will be allowed to mourn later. For now, he has just been given the promise of his own mercenary group one day._

"_I have to leave, Shinon," Greil says, his tone immediately changing back to dismal. "I can't stay much longer. Take care of Ike and Mist for me. I'll be back when…when I've come to terms with myself."_

_Shinon's mood dampens slightly, but he nods and slowly backs away to the door, waiting for Greil to say anything else. _

"_Go, Shinon," Greil says. "I don't want the children to see me leave."_

"_Yes…Father," Shinon says, swallowing and giving Greil one last glance before exiting the room. He has no idea how long Greil will be gone, how long he will have to play the parent for Ike and Mist, but Greil trusts him. As long as Greil believes in him, he'll have the strength to carry through. After all, he needs even more strength than this to lead a mercenary group._

_Ike runs up to Shinon as he walks into the living room. As he accepts Ike's warm embrace, he thinks about the day when Ike will be able to look up to him and call him Commander._


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

"Remind me again why I decided to take on this job?" Ike sighs miserably.

"Because you are more inclined to listen to your feelings rather than my logic," Soren states bluntly.

"Soren…could I ask a favor of you?" Ike asks. "The next time Dr. Ryan's daughter gets kidnapped, remind me to decline his offer to retrieve her. If I agree to it, I give you permission to launch a Blizzard at my head."

"I will keep that in mind," Soren says. "I did all the calculations and, of the 250 gold coins Dr. Ryan gave us for the job, 150 of it had to go for weapon and staff repairs. Here are your ten coins for your salary."

Ike sighs and accepts the ten lousy coins from Soren. _For a guy as rich as Dr. Ryan is, he sure is a cheapskate, _Ike grumbles in his mind. _We go out of our way to rescue his kidnapped daughter, who turns out to be the most spoiled little brat I've ever met, and all he gives us is 250 gold. We get more than that delivering heavy packages for the mail service. _

"We've really been getting some low-paying jobs recently," Ike mumbles. Ike knows this is the path he chose. He wants to live humbly, serving people because it's right, not because of the fame. Still, realistically, he has ten mercenaries to feed, not to mention having to keep up with clothing, weapon repairs, and buying new supplies. He wonders how his father ever did it. _Then again, my father only had seven of us to deal with. Mia hadn't arrived yet, Mist and Rolf weren't trained to fight, and Soren was gone for a while._

"If things don't pick up around here, we may need to move elsewhere simply to find higher-paying jobs," Soren suggests.

"Elsewhere in Crimea?" Ike asks. Their jobs cover most of the Crimean land. Ike doesn't know of an area where they can't reach.

"I was thinking more along the lines of Daein or Begnion," Soren says. "Daein especially is in need of one."

"I don't know if I could leave Crimea," Ike frowns. "If we were to change our base, I'd try Gallia first."

For a split second, Ike notices Soren's fists clench. Soren has never been fond of Gallia, nor its inhabitants. Being the offspring of a beorc and laguz union, something the laguz society detests, Soren had received an overwhelming and undeserved amount of rejection and negligence from the beast tribe of Gallia. Soren has never been able to fully accept them since.

"We're staying in Crimea for a while," Ike says. "It may just be a slow season. I'm sure it'll pick up soon."

Soren nods, then sighs. "I promised Mist I would teach her how to read a tome," he says.

"I'll offer some prayers to the goddess for you," Ike laughs. Soren nods, then walks away mumbling something incomprehensible to himself.

Ike smiles and shakes his head. The only time Soren ever loosens up, he ends up doing it way too much, which leads to revelations of fear, anger, and sometimes tears as well. Ike wonders how someone can live in those extremes and still maintain their sanity.

Ike decides to step outside for a moment. He feels like he needs a little fresh air, especially after how disappointing today has been. One of the richest men in Crimea paid them one of the lowest salaries they've ever received. Sometimes Ike wonders what makes a man stingy and what makes a man generous. Humble mercenaries can't live off of a stingy paycheck. Their work gets taken for granted so often.

Still, if Ike had kept his lord position three years ago in Crimea, he would've had to deal with folks like Dr. Ryan everyday. He could hardly bear that kind of life - neither could Soren. Listening to the advice of his best friend, Ike resigned his position.

_Still, I do wish people would be more generous, _he thinks. _After all the sacrifices we make for them, they can at least sacrifice a little financially to thank us. _Ike decides he shouldn't think about it anymore. It'll only make him more depressed.

Without paying attention, Ike finds his feet leading him to a place of comfort - his father's grave. Sometimes it brings more pain than relief, but most of the time it calms his soul. He feels close to his father, standing near his grave, as if Greil can hear what he has to say.

Ike stops suddenly. Sitting on top of the patch of dirt known as Greil's grave is none other than Shinon, his long red ponytail swaying with the gentle breeze. Ike doesn't really appreciate Shinon sitting directly on top of the grave, but what irks him even worse is the fact that his archer is drinking as well.

"Shinon, give it a break," Ike says, walking up to him.

"You give it a break," Shinon mumbles, taking another swig.

"If you're going to drink, don't do it on my father's grave," Ike says, reaching for the bottle. Shinon jerks it away and gives Ike the same glare he'd given Dr. Ryan's daughter earlier.

"I'll drink where I want to," Shinon snaps.

"It's disrespectful, Shinon," Ike says, quickly feeling his bitterness rising. Normally he'd have more patience for this, but the anniversary of his father's death and his lousy payday is beating heavy on his heart. He wants his father back so bad…

"Well, excuse me for not respecting a pile of dirt," Shinon snarls, spitting off to the side.

It's all it takes to push Ike over the edge. Shinon practically called Ike's father a pile of dirt. Consumed with a sudden flare of rage, Ike reaches for his sword - only to grab air. He'd left his sword back at the fort. _Just because I don't have a sword doesn't mean you'll get away with this, _Ike seethes to himself, quickly and angrily stepping beside Shinon, grabbing his arm, and jerking him off his father's grave. Shinon has no time to react, spilling his drink all over.

"Don't ever talk about my father or his grave that way, do you understand me?" Ike barks in his archer's face. "From now on, you aren't even-"

Ike is cut off by a strong shove, which nearly topples him over. Shinon gets on his feet and gives what can only be described as a look of power and authority. Ike, now almost blinded by his anger, refuses to let Shinon have the control.

"You want to fight, eh, Shinon? I'll take you down right here, right now," Ike says, advancing on Shinon at lightning speed and throwing his arm.

"Is that supposed to scare me?" Shinon lets out a laugh, parrying Ike's punch and shoving him again. "I could beat you blindfolded with one hand tied behind my back."

Ike recovers from Shinon's push and unexpectedly backhands him, his knuckles forcefully colliding with Shinon's high cheekbone. Before Shinon can refocus from the blow, Ike delivers another to his neck, bringing him to the ground.

"I'm sure, just like you could three years ago when you fought with the Daein army," Ike mocks.

Ike is unable to see Shinon's hand in time, which launches towards his ankle and pulls him to the ground as well. Before Ike can even think about what happened, Shinon is on top of him, pounding Ike's face and chest.

"I let you win, idiot!" Shinon snaps.

"That excuse is getting old, Shinon!" Ike yells, finally getting himself to turn over to his side and knock Shinon off-balance. "It seems you use it every time I beat you." Ike's first punch hits Shinon in the chest, his second in the stomach. Shinon's hands fly to his stomach for only a second, but it's enough time for Ike to smash him in the face, allowing the position to reverse, with Ike on top of Shinon. Ike begins to nail Shinon's face with all his power, even with Shinon covering it.

In the back of Ike's mind, he realizes at this point he'd usually give his opponent the chance to surrender and give the win to him. However, Shinon's disrespectful words pound in Ike's brain, driving him on. He finds himself hammering Shinon harder and harder.

He is finally stopped by a crushing blow to the groin, then another. Ike shrieks and backs away slightly, covering his aching area. The sudden surprise allows Shinon to slip out from underneath Ike and throw some punches of his own. Ike's lip is cut open, blood swirling in his mouth. His eye partly swollen, he sees the fire and bitterness in Shinon's eyes, glaring over now-almost-black bruises on both cheeks.

"My father never should have hired you," Ike growls, defending himself from Shinon's raging blows.

"What, you calling your father stupid?" Shinon barks. "You got a stupid father, Ike?"

Ike loses all sense of mercy and selflessness. At this moment, Shinon is an enemy - one that deserves to die. A small voice tells Ike that this is certainly not like him. He ignores it. Ike's body takes complete control as he grabs Shinon's long ponytail and throws him to the ground. Keeping Shinon's hair in a tight grip close to his scalp and planting his knees on either side of Shinon's chest, Ike uses his one free hand and closes his fingers firmly around Shinon's throat. Shinon begins to struggle immediately, first trying to punch Ike's groin and stomach. However, it only seals Ike's power. Ike can feel Shinon's strength quickly diminishing. _Stop, _a little voice in the back of his mind tells him. Ike only presses harder against Shinon's throat.

Now Shinon is kicking and squirming, trying to release Ike's grip from his neck. Ike hears his breaths getting shallower and hoarser. Ike stares into Shinon's eyes, now slightly tinted with fear and panic as they water up.

_Stop it, Ike. _

The squirming begins to slow down. Shinon's tugs get weaker and weaker. Ike can literally feel himself squeezing the last bit of life out of him.

_Ike! You're going to kill him!_

The kicking ceases. Shinon gives a couple of strained coughs, his hands simply resting on Ike's, unable to pull away anymore. Just ten seconds more. Ten seconds will be all it takes…

"Ike!" a shrill voice yelps.

"Uncle Shinon?" a slightly deeper voice cries.

Immediately Ike's senses slam back into him like a flying arrow. _Oh, goddess, I'm about to kill Shinon, _Ike's mind screams. Like a lightning flash, Ike removes his hand from Shinon's throat and leaps off of him. Shinon faintly rolls over to his side and tries to gasp in air through his swollen neck. Ike glances to his right and feels his heart sink as he sees the horrified faces of Mist and Rolf.

"G-go get Rhys, Mist," Ike swallows and commands, suddenly trembling all over. "Go get him now. Tell him Shinon's hurt."

"Why did you fight? Did Shinon start it again?" Mist squeaks, her eyes watering up.

"Did Shinon start it again? You're pinning the blame on him?" Rolf screams, turning in anger towards Mist. "Your brother almost killed him! He almost strangled him to death!"

"Shinon always starts it! Ike wouldn't be mad if Shinon didn't tick him off all the time!" Mist yells back, furiously defending her brother.

"You're justifying Ike trying to murder Uncle Shinon?" Rolf shouts.

"Go get Rhys and go get him NOW!" Ike screams over their argument, halting it immediately. "Mist, you get a staff too. Do it quickly."

Mist and Rolf still look furious, but they both dash back together to find Rhys. Ike looks at Shinon's crumpled body on the ground. The level of Ike's rage had been so great, and now his sorrow and remorse is equally as great. Here he is, commander of the Greil Mercenaries, honorable and merciful, yet he almost kills one of his own men in cold blood. Nothing anyone says or does should provoke a commander to lose control like that.

Ike swallows and kneels next to Shinon, listening in horror as Shinon tries desperately to breathe. Saltwater drips down Shinon's cheeks from his watering eyes, which are now closed in agony.

"I'm sorry, Shinon," Ike croaks, seeing the deep blue hand-shaped bruise on Shinon's throat. He tries to help prop Shinon up so he might breathe better, but Shinon's weak fingers brush against him. If Shinon had been stronger, the small touch would have been a shove.

Ike wonders how he ever could have lost his mind like that and, for a moment, wonders if this incident was just a taste of how his father felt when he'd touched the medallion.

"Forgive me, Father," Ike whispers, dropping his head and shutting his eyes. "I have failed."

_NOTE FROM ALLHAILMARIO'S SISTER (aka author of this story): Somehow I sense right after this chapter that I'm going to get some crap about, "Ike's not like that! He's merciful and wonderful and wouldn't ever do that to anyone ever! Go die in a hole, stupid can't-ever-get-character-personalities-right girl!" Or something along those lines. My whole desire for this story was to make it as realistic as possible. So here, I took into account that a) Ike is a man and therefore more prone to a physical fight, and typically as fights progress, people get more and more upset, b) it was the anniversary of his father's death, which combined with worry and stress over a hard day and low pay can make anyone pretty irritable, and c) he felt deep disrespect from Shinon, and at least from what I've heard and observed, men have this thing about respect and its utmost importance._

_Taking all that into account, and remembering Ike's strained relationship with Shinon anyway, this is what developed. Ike is merciful most of the time, but Ike is also human. We will get to see his great remorse later on in the story. Thank you for reading this long explanation, which hopefully will clear some things up before I get knocked with a bunch of insults. Enjoy the rest of the story. :)_


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

"_Shinon? When is Father going to come back?" Mist asks, crawling into Shinon's lap._

"_I don't know, Mist," Shinon says wearily. "The answer has been the same for the last three weeks and it'll be the same until Father walks through the door."_

"_Do you think he'll be back soon?" Mist asks, frowning._

"_I hope so," Shinon sighs. "I really hope so."_

_For three weeks Shinon has watched over the household. He has swept the floors and cleaned the cobwebs. He has pulled the weeds and trimmed the grass. He has made the beds and ran necessary errands. He has cooked three meals nearly every single day - occasionally Greil's friend Titania will help, but he finds she cooks just about as well as he does (which isn't saying a lot). And the children…Shinon never comprehended just how much responsibility there is in caring for a child. They have so many needs. Shinon doesn't even know how well he's kept up with them, if he's given them the love and care they require, or if he's just a horrible parent who can't do anything right. Ike and Mist haven't complained about it. In fact, they seem to love Shinon's way of doing things._

_Still, Shinon never imagined Greil would be gone for three weeks. What if he doesn't return for another three? What if he's gone for months? A year? Two years? Exhausted, Shinon doesn't know how much longer he can parent Ike and Mist. He doesn't know if he's strong enough. He's only nineteen, for heaven's sake._

"_Can we go to the bakery today, Shinon?" Mist asks, her baby blues gazing straight up at Shinon._

"_I'll have to think about it, Mist," Shinon says, wanting more than anything to just lay in bed and sleep for a few hours…or days._

"_Please?" Mist begs._

"_I said I'll have to think about it," Shinon says, feeling his hands clench slightly. He hates repeating himself. He wishes people would listen the first time._

"_How long do you have to think about it?" Mist asks._

"_I'll think about it for an hour," Shinon sighs. _

"_Okay. I'll go play with my dolls and then in an hour I'll ask you again," Mist's smile beams as she hops off his lap and dashes clumsily to her room. When she's out of sight, Shinon lets his head fall on the back of the couch. He knows she'll be back in ten minutes asking if an hour's been up yet._

"_Shinon?" another young voice speaks. Shinon doesn't answer. He wishes he could just be left alone._

"_Shinon, can you teach me how to fight?" Ike asks, plopping next to Shinon on the couch. This causes Shinon to lift his head and glance at the young boy. Ike has never asked him to fight with him. Ike's wrestled with his father sometimes, but never with Shinon. Shinon remembers Greil also teaching Ike some basic things about swords, like how to hold them and such. _

"_I can't teach you very much about a sword, Ike," Shinon says. "I'm an archer."_

"_Well, can you teach me how to spar?" Ike asks eagerly. "I wanna know how to defend myself against the bullies in town! They get really mean to me sometimes. You're really tough, Shinon. I like watching you fight with Father. Can you teach me something? Please?"_

_A streak of pride runs through Shinon's body. Greil used to spar with Shinon all the time to increase his defensive skills. It's gotten to the point now where Shinon can dodge just about anything Greil throws at him. And now Ike wants him to teach him what he knows?_

"_Hitting people is never an appropriate response," Shinon says, seeing Ike's face fall for a moment. "But…I suppose I can teach you a little of what I know."_

"_Yay! I love you, Shinon!" Ike shrieks, bouncing on the couch. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"_

"_Alright, enough hopping," Shinon barks, getting off the couch. "You do that and you become very vulnerable. C'mere, you need to know what to do if someone throws a punch at you."_

_Tutoring Ike reenergizes Shinon, and he finds himself teaching for two whole hours. Mist ran up after the first hour and, seeing the fun Ike was having, requested that Shinon teach her too. By the end of their training, Ike and Mist have learned all the basic essentials for defending themselves._

"_Now remember, leave the neck and throat alone unless you're looking to seriously damage or kill someone," Shinon wraps it up. "But, in case you ever need to defend your life by taking a life, knock them over, put your knees on either side of their chest, grab their throat, and squeeze against their Adam's apple. If they have enough hair to grab, you can do that close to their scalp to drain them faster."_

"_Cool!" Ike pants, sweat sliding down his excited face. _

"_But don't go practicing that on people, k?" Shinon says. "You shouldn't have to use any of what I taught you at your age. It's just good to know in case you ever need it."_

"_There's somebody at the door! Somebody at the door!" Mist shrieks, all wound up from Shinon's sparring lesson. "See? You can see her out the window!"_

_Shinon glances out the window Mist is pointing to and sees Titania standing outside, her bright red hair in a long braid. Shinon wipes the sweat off his face and tries to readjust his ponytail, but finds it in a mess. Not wanting to keep Titania waiting, Shinon tries to jerk the hair-tie out, which only causes him pain as it's hopelessly stuck. Ignoring it, Shinon answers the door. Titania takes a step back and examines him. She and Shinon haven't seen each other in about a week._

"_Well, physically, you look…awful," Titania says with a small laugh._

"_Thanks, you look awful too," Shinon retorts. _

"_I didn't mean it like that, Shinon, it's just…" Titania pauses for a moment. "You look exhausted. Those are some pretty dark circles under your eyes, and your hair's-"_

"_It's a mess, I know," Shinon says. "I just got done teaching Ike and Mist how to fight." He steps back to let Titania in the door._

"_You were teaching the children how to fight?" Titania shoots a glance at Shinon. "Shinon! Greil can teach them when he feels they're ready. In fact, I don't think Mist needs to be learning how to fight, frankly."_

"_I told them only to use my techniques when necessary," Shinon says. Titania points at Ike and Mist in the living area, both wrestling each other to the ground. Shinon shrugs and says, "I told them not to."_

"_Shinon, how are you doing?" Titania suddenly asks, looking Shinon full in the face. "You look tired."_

_Shinon sighs and looks back at Ike and Mist. He hates it when Titania asks him stuff like that - and she does it every time she comes. "How are you doing?" "Are you holding up okay?" "You really miss Elena, don't you?" Does she honestly think he's going to answer? Like he's going to spill his heart and blubber, "Oh, Titania, it's been so hard!" _

"_I know we don't know each other as well as we could, but…you know I'd do anything for Greil's son," Titania says with a small smile._

_Shinon tries not to roll his eyes._

"_If you ever need my help in anything, all you have to do is ask, Shinon," Titania says. "You don't have to do this on your own. You're still young too, you know."_

"_I'm an adult, Titania," Shinon says. "Stop baby-talking me."_

"_You're nineteen," Titania says firmly. "In all respects, you are still a kid."_

"_If Greil didn't trust me, he wouldn't give me this responsibility," Shinon says with equal firmness. "If he didn't think I could do it, don't you think he would've asked someone to help me?"_

_Titania pauses, as if trying to think of something to say. Shinon stares at her, waiting patiently for an answer. _Women listen to their emotions too much, _Shinon thinks. He hates how Titania treats him like a little boy, like he's incapable of doing anything without a "grown-up's" help. Shinon knows he's capable of doing anything. His father beat capability into him. He was taught never to fail. _

"_Alright, I see your point," Titania sighs. "I just…I worry so much about you."_

"_Well, don't," Shinon frowns. He also hates it when people worry about him. Worry doesn't improve anything. Worry only distracts._

"_Okay, Shinon…" Titania says, apparently realizing Shinon's desire to end the conversation. "But just remember, even if Greil thinks you're fully capable of doing something, it's not a sign of weakness if you just want a little help."_

Yes, it is, _Shinon thinks, but decides to remain silent._

"_Well…just let me know if you need me," Titania gives an awkward smile and heads back towards the door. "Stay strong, Shinon. You're doing very well."_

"_I'm glad I have your approval," Shinon says._

_Titania nods, smiles again, then turns and leaves, glancing back at Shinon occasionally. Shinon watches after her for a little while, then turns away. He probably shouldn't have been so annoyed with her. She's a woman. She does woman things. She has woman emotions. She probably has some weird instinct to protect and care for him or something._

"_Was that Titania?" Ike asks, running up to Shinon, a small fresh bruise on his forehead._

"_Yeah, that was Titania," Shinon says._

"_When Father starts the mercenary group, is she going to be in it?" Ike asks._

"_I don't see why not," Shinon shrugs, glancing at the kitchen. He's starting to get hungry. Perhaps it's time to start making dinner._

"_Is Father going to marry her and make her our new Mother?" Mist squeaks, stumbling over to Shinon as well._

_Shinon freezes, his throat closing up for a moment. In a flash, the scene plays out in his mind: Greil finding love in Titania, kissing her, having a beautiful flowery wedding out in the forest. Ike and Mist would address her as "Mother," and she would become all the things that Elena was._

_Shinon's stomach lurches and he tastes a bit of his lunch in the back of his throat. Titania is not his mother. Titania will never be his mother. And she will never, ever be all the things that Elena was. She will never replace Elena and Shinon will have a serious discussion with Father if he even considers it._

_He called him Father. Not Greil. Father._

"_No," Shinon finally answers Mist's question. "Titania's just a family friend. She's not becoming anyone's new Mother."_

"_Aw, well, I like her," Mist pouts._

"_Yeah, sure," Shinon mumbles, then turns to the kitchen. "Well, I'm hungry, so I'm going to go ahead and make dinner. How does beef on bread sound?"_

"_We had those yesterday!" Ike frowns. _

"_Fine, if you don't want them, you don't have to eat them," Shinon shrugs, heading into the kitchen. "I'm not making anything else, so if you want to go hungry tonight…"_

"_Oh! Um…yummy! Beef on bread sounds wonderful!" Ike immediately chimes._

"_That's a boy," Shinon smirks. Ike's not a bad kid. Not a bad kid at all._


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

Ike leans on the balcony railing, sighing as a gentle breeze blows against him. It's a wonderful evening, weather-wise. The skies are clear, the stars are numerous, the moon is beaming a spotlight on the world, and the temperature couldn't be better. Ike hates it. He wishes it were freezing cold. He wishes it were snowing. Perhaps it would give him pain…or perhaps numb it.

Afternoon plays over and over and over in his mind. Every time he tries to divert his attention, it always comes back. He sees Shinon on his father's grave, hears his disrespectful words. _They weren't even all that bad, knowing Shinon, _Ike scolds himself. Sometimes the memory is crisp and clear, and Ike can count every punch he landed on his marksman, every bit of fear in his eyes, every breath he struggled out. Sometimes the memory goes blurry, and all Ike sees are flashes of Shinon's blood, his swinging arm, Shinon's ponytail flying.

One thing remains jammed in his head: he almost killed the first member of the Greil Mercenaries.

Disgusted with himself, Ike buries his face in his hands. He's _always _been merciful. He's _always _cared about his enemies. He's _always _fought fair. This is so unlike him. What possibly could have come over him? He's never lost his patience that quickly, that fiercely.

"Commander."

Ike turns to see Titania standing behind him, staring at him gently. He doesn't respond to her. He doesn't have anything to say at the moment.

"It's over, Ike," Titania says, walking up next to him on the balcony. "The fight is past. It was a dumb idea, I'll admit, but it's over. Shinon's still healing in bed, but he's going to be alright."

"Yeah, and he'll be having a death wish for me from now on," Ike grumbles.

"He'll probably be really mad for a while, but I'm sure he'll get over it soon," Titania says.

Ike glances at her in disbelief and says, "Titania, he's hated me for years before this and I barely even touched him back then. I can have Soren make the exact calculations, but I'm pretty sure Shinon's not going to let this go for decades."

Titania pauses for a moment, then lets out a small laugh and murmurs, "Oh, how a man's pride can corrupt his whole being."

"It's not about his pride, Titania," Ike sighs. "I very nearly murdered him. If my own commander attempted something like that on me, I'm pretty sure I'd hate him too. It's not about pride, it's about almost losing a life. I almost killed him."

"I wasn't referring to that, Ike," Titania says, her gaze falling on him. "Pride is what started the fight anyway, long before it even began. Shinon's got mounds of it to spare. He's been pushed down before in his life, and he's determined not to let it happen again. He's always wanted to rise above it all, to become great. His grandest dream was simply to become the commander of this mercenary group."

Ike glances in surprise toward Titania. "The commander of the Greil Mercenaries?" he asks. "I mean, I know he's mentioned it before, but...he's always complaining about it, how we ought to take on bigger work."

"He's just bitter that he's not in command of it," Titania lets out a laugh. "You know, once upon a time, Shinon was just as close to you as he is to Rolf now?"

Ike pauses and tries fervently to picture it in his mind, what it would be like in a world where Shinon actually kind of liked him. He finds it impossible. Shinon's always hated him, hasn't he?

"_I haven't always hated you."_

Already confused, Ike turns back to Titania, his eyes pleading for more.

"You simply don't recall very much of your closeness," Titania goes on. "You only remember a few select memories from before age ten. When Greil started the mercenaries, there was much, much work to be done. For a little while, it was just Greil, Shinon, Gatrie, and myself, and we had to be gone constantly. The villagers were always happy to baby-sit you and Mist as long as we kept their town safe."

"I seem to remember more of you than of Shinon, though," Ike says.

"And you'll remember more of me than of Gatrie as well," Titania smiles. "You and Mist were adorable when you were younger. I couldn't stay away for very long. Shinon and Gatrie, however, were out with Greil most of the time, training and fighting and then training some more. At the end of the day, Shinon would be too exhausted to hang around and would often go straight to bed. With him being gone and busy so much, you two barely saw each other after the mercenaries started. Then before long, Soren came around, and naturally you focused all your time and energy on your new playmate. With you hanging with Soren all the time, and Shinon training to become commander, you grew farther and farther apart."

"Wait a minute, hold it right there!" Ike says, stepping back in shock. "Shinon…was training to be commander? I-I thought…well, if you were deputy commander, then wouldn't you-"

"I became deputy commander only two years before Greil died," Titania explains. "Shinon led us for five years before I ever assumed that position. Of course, when we began to hire more mercenaries, I became a very close second-in-command, just in case something would happen and I would have to become deputy commander…which something did happen."

"Why didn't I know this before?" Ike asks in wonder.

"Way back then, you were too young and too separated from the mercenary work to even think about our positions," Titania says. "We were just people to you. We didn't go by rank. And frankly…we never explained Shinon's leadership role because, well…out of respect for Shinon, we decided to keep it silent."

"Why? What would be the harm in telling me?" Ike asks.

Titania sighs, pauses, then finally goes on. "Shinon was a fantastic deputy commander, Ike. A natural leader. He got us out of many sticky situations. He was placed right where he belonged and he was happy there. Goddess, it was probably the only time in his life when he was truly happy…Greil told me Shinon had an abusive childhood. Greil had found him much the same way you found Soren: starved, beaten, afraid, rejected. Shinon wanted so desperately to become great, to prove that he never deserved to be pushed around. People would look up to him rather than down on him. He looked so proud, knowing one day he'd receive the title of commander. Greil promised him that title."

Titania pauses again. Ike feels his heart thudding against his chest. He's never known this about Shinon. He's never even thought about what his past might be like. Suddenly everything's making sense.

"And so…well, that's why I've never told you about Shinon's leadership role in the Greil Mercenaries," Titania swallows and shrugs. "He doesn't like to talk about it. He was once deputy commander, promised to be commander, and suddenly he lost both. It was only after then that Shinon started becoming truly bitter and angry. His mouth was far more controlled before that day. His hatred for you really started as overwhelming jealousy. Greil began to train you to become commander, the position Shinon was promised. And because you had grown so apart, you barely even paid attention to Shinon. Over the years, his jealousy caused him to lose control of his tongue, which rubbed you the wrong way, and so that's how it evolved into this, one hating the other."

Ike stares at his hands, resting on the railing. He's not sure what to think about all this. If he had known all of this much sooner, would he have been able to mend relations before the hatred got this far? Would he have respected Shinon more? Would Shinon have even respected him a little? Would things be different?

Rather than asking Titania a million questions, he settles on the one he wants to know the most.

"What caused Shinon to lose his position?" Ike asks. "It had to be something…big, I guess. My father isn't one to break a promise. He's something he feels - er, _felt - _so strongly against. What would cause him to break his promise to Shinon? And even if Shinon never inherited commandership, why would he lose his position as deputy commander?"

Titania sighs and closes her eyes. Ike tries to quiet his beating heart enough to hear the answer. This would explain so much.

"I wish I knew, Ike," Titania says quietly. "I wish I knew."

"You mean…you mean you don't even know why Shinon lost his position?" Ike asks incredulously. "My father never told you?"

"Greil never told anyone," Titania says. "It just…it started out as an ordinary day, and then the next morning I was informed that I was now deputy commander and that he would begin to train you to receive commandership. I remember him saying that he hoped it wasn't too late. Two years is not a lot of time to learn."

"No, it's not, but…" Ike says, his head swimming. "But didn't my father even give you a hint? He couldn't have just kicked Shinon out of the running just because he felt like it."

"All he told me was that he discovered something about Shinon that made him 'unable to take on the roles of commander, deputy commander, or anything more significant than a common mercenary,'" Titania sighs. "I have no idea what happened, what Greil discovered, but…Shinon became an ordinary mercenary that day and he became bitter for life, particularly when he had to start taking orders from you, after all he'd done to help raise you and train you."

"I…I had no idea…" Ike mumbles. Suddenly he finds himself feeling worse than ever. He nearly ended Shinon's life, treated him like dirt, without ever knowing that Shinon had lived in misery nearly his entire life. Abused as a child, rejected from society, his dreams crushed…for these reasons, Ike has comforted Soren. Why shouldn't he do the same for Shinon?

As soon as he gets better, Ike decides it's time to have a chat with his marksman.

_NOTE FROM ALLHAILMARIO'S SISTER (aka the chick who wrote this story): Normally I don't publish two chapters at once, but this is sort of an apology for waiting so long. What with Thanksgiving, Christmas, family visits, school, college preparation, two part-time jobs, and church ministry involvements, I've hardly had the time to update. Coming up real soon, there will be another occasion when I post two chapters at once, just because it will make more sense then. So thank you for your patience (assuming you didn't entirely forget about the story, which you probably did, I don't blame you) and expect another chapter within a couple of weeks. If fourteen days have gone by without a story update, I give you permission to pester me in the comments section._


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

"_Shinon, the bandits! They're trying to attack the villagers!" Titania gasps, stopping her horse in front of her deputy commander. "They're more dangerous than we first thought."_

_Shinon takes a quick look around, hearing the screams of the women and children. He doesn't like it. It sounds far too much like the night Greil touched the medallion. Hastily Shinon tries to think of a plan. Not only does he have to drive the bandits away, save the villagers, and douse the houses lit on fire, he also has to figure out how to capture the leader of them, a man by the name of Arrojo. He's been terrorizing many villages in Crimea and has been known to be extremely dangerous._

"_Find Oscar and both of you gather the villagers into one location as best you can," Shinon barks after little hesitation. "All of your efforts go into defending them."_

_Titania nods, then gallops away, calling Oscar's name. Shinon jerks around and finds his axe fighter, Boyd, taking down two bandits at one time. Glancing a little to the left, he sees a small figure cloaked in white, huddled next to an unburned house.  
_

"_Boyd! Rhys!" Shinon shouts, drawing his men to him. "Rhys, I want you to start dousing the house fires. Your magic will help stop them quicker. Boyd, watch his back. Bandits will be attracted to an unarmed man."_

"_Yes, sir," Boyd grins, happy to be able to swing his axe at more bandits. Rhys looks ready to throw up, but nods and trots towards a burning building. Running in a different direction, Shinon pauses only to shoot down a couple of bandits with his well-practiced aim. Already things are beginning to work in his favor. When they'd first arrived at the village, the quantity and quality of bandits were high enough to make him nervous, but he can see some of the bandits attempting to get away. He knows that when a few bandits start to leave, the rest eventually turn into cowards and try to evacuate as well._

"_Hey, Shinon! I got your back!" a voice shouts. Shinon turns and finds his friend Gatrie grinning back at him. His dopey, cheerful, womanizing friend._ _He cracks Shinon up all the time, but Shinon would never admit it._

"_Does it look like I need protecting?" Shinon barks, sweeping his arm to show the emptiness around him. "Go help Titania and Oscar. They'll need help with the villagers."_

"_As you command, Shinon! Gatrie to the rescue!" Gatrie yells, clumsily running off to aid Titania and save the day. _

_Shinon fires a few arrows at a couple of men charging for Boyd and Rhys, but sees tremendous light at the end of the tunnel. Bandits are scattering by the masses now. In fifteen minutes, more or less, the village should be free of troubles. Even Titania and Oscar have been defending the villagers quite well even without Gatrie's help._

_Still, Shinon feels something prickling down his spine. Something's not right. He feels as if the enemy may still have something to surprise him. Raising his bow, Shinon looks around, his sharp eyes checking every nook and cranny for danger._

_Unfortunately he doesn't look behind him in time._

_Shinon freezes as a cold steel blade is pressed against his throat, followed by a hand firmly clasping over his mouth. Barely daring to breathe, barely daring to move, Shinon waits, accidentally swallowing and feeling the sharpness of the sword. He hears chuckling right next to his ear, feels the warm breath against his face, and he knows he's just been caught by Arrojo._

"_I wouldn't be making any noise if I were you, boy," the deep, husky voice speaks right in his ear. "Because you know, this blade's taken a liking to your neck, and if you scream…well, I might not be able to hold it back."_

_Shinon stays quiet._

"_Very good," Arrojo smiles - Shinon knows he's smiling. "Now lower your bow. You won't be needing it."_

_Shinon obeys._

"_Excellent," Arrojo breathes, slowly dragging his hand from Shinon's mouth to his hair. Shinon stiffens as Arrojo begins to stroke his red locks, running his fingers through his ponytail. "You know, you're a rather pretty boy. I think I like you."_

_Shinon waits._

"_You're a smart one too," Arrojo says. "A natural leader and a darn good archer. One of the best I've seen, in fact. I wonder how much you're getting paid here, in this ragtag mercenary group."_

_Just a little bit longer. Shinon can feel his presence. Just a little…bit…longer…_

"_You know, if you joined me and became my deputy commander, well…I don't know, how would three hundred gold a week sound?" Arrojo offers. "More on a good week."_

"_Well, that sounds awfully fine, but unfortunately, I don't really feel like giving my deputy commander up," another deep voice speaks from behind._

_Shinon smiles._

_Immediately the sword is removed from Shinon's throat. Shinon turns around and nods at Commander Greil, who quickly binds an irritated Arrojo's hands behind him. Greil gives Shinon a small smile._

"_Well done, Shinon," Greil says. "We've won. Your tactics worked well."_

"_Of course," Shinon says, pride swelling up in him. Another job well done. Another step closer to his goal of becoming commander._

_The walk back home is a long one, but a grand one. Shinon walks beside Greil, his head held high. Pausing for a moment, he spits on the ground. In his mind, the spit lands on his father's face. _That's what I think of you, _Shinon smirks. _And that's what you deserve. You told me I was worthless. You told me I wouldn't measure up to anything. You said my mother hated me as she died giving me birth. Too bad you've only been talking about yourself the whole time. I'm deputy commander, serving under the great Rider of Daein, Gawain, and one day, this whole mercenary group will be under my commandership. What have you ever done with your life, Father? What have you ever been? The only thing you can lay claim to is beating your son to the point of driving him off.

_Shinon spits on the ground again._

_As they approach their fort, Shinon notices a fifteen-year-old Ike swinging a long wooden stick around clumsily in front of his friend Soren. Shinon laughs to himself. Ike probably thinks he looks so polished and professional - really, swinging a sword like that would get him killed in a real battle. Soren watches with unfazed eyes, clutching his thick book to his chest._

_Soren is an interesting story, and Shinon isn't quite sure whether he likes him or not. The tiny black-haired mage was the same boy Ike had found on the day Greil went berserk. Soren had shown back up two years before and Ike had pleaded with Greil to let him join the mercenary team. Greil hadn't wanted to, but Shinon suggested it'd be a good thing to have a mage in the long run._

_Shinon knows that Soren is fairly uncomfortable with him, though. He's heard it through the wall: "I don't know, Ike. There's just something about the archer that I don't like." To which Ike had replied, "Oh, you mean Shinon? He's alright. I mean, I haven't talked to him much in…months, I think, but…I think he's okay." _

_Titania immediately heads over to Ike and Soren, probably to tell them about the tales of battle. Ike is always eager to hear them, Soren could probably care less. _

"_Hey, Shinon, what say we go have ourselves a celebration?" Gatrie claps Shinon on the shoulder. "That new bar in town has some yummy-licious girls, I hear! Tee hee hee!"_

"_Geez, Gatrie, it's alright to talk about girls, you don't have to laugh like one," Shinon grumbles. _

"_It's not a girl laugh! It's a…it's a Gatrie laugh!" Gatrie justifies, straightening his shoulders. "I have my own laugh and you can't take that from me, Shinon!"_

"_Of course not, Gatrie, tee hee hee!" Shinon squeals in a high pitch voice and bats his eyelashes. He snorts to himself, then side-glances at Gatrie, who obviously didn't get it._

"_Well, you're kind of sounding like a girl now, Shinon," Gatrie says, rubbing the back of his neck. "And you've even got long hair like one too. Say, you could even pretend to be one for fun!"_

"_Yeah, fun," Shinon sighs. "Hey, you go on ahead and chat up some of the chicks. I gotta talk with the Commander for a sec."_

_Shinon keeps walking to find Greil again, barely listening while Gatrie shouts, "Yeah, I'll do that, Shinon! Don't you worry! I'll have us a whole gaggle of girls when you arrive!" Shinon finds Greil staring after Gatrie, laughing and shaking his head._

"_It's a good thing he can use a lance well," Greil says. "But you know, I kinda like him."_

"_He's good for a laugh now and then," Shinon smirks, then resumes to serious business and asks, "How did I do, really?"_

"_Fantastic as always, Shinon," Greil smiles proudly. "You kept a tactical mind throughout it all, protected the villagers, saved all the houses, and got all the bandits out without having to kill all of them. I was very pleased watching you. Of course, I'd suggest in the future watching over yourself a little more carefully, but at least you knew I had your back."_

"_Yeah…that guy was a creep," Shinon says, grimacing. "I think he was even hitting on me."_

"_There are stranger men around, Shinon," Greil sighs. "But…you're ready."_

"_Ready…?" Shinon asks, catching his breath without even meaning to. _Come on, Shinon, this is stupid and childish. Calm down. Only immature kids like Gatrie react this way.

"_If anything were to happen, you'd be fully capable of becoming commander," Greil says. "Course, if not, I'm not ready to retire just yet." - He gives a laugh - "But…you got it in you, Shinon. You'll be an excellent commander for this group."_

_Shinon stands tall, allows himself a smile, and manages to get out, "Thank you, Commander. I'm honored to hear you say so. If I may be excused." Then he walks out to the hallway, glances around to make sure he's alone, shout-whispers "Yes!" and pumps his fists in celebration._


	14. Chapter 14

_Note From AllHailMario's Sister (AKA the author of this story): Here's another two chapter update for you, since at this point either the suspense will kill you or (more likely) you've already figured out what the deal is with Shinon. After this there are only two more chapters to the story before it's completed, and they will both be posted separately. Thanks so much for reading, and don't forget to review!_

**Chapter Fourteen**

"Oh, bother," Rhys scratches his head. "I suppose he's out and about. The only people he's ever listened to are Commander Greil and Titania, so of course he won't obey when I tell him to rest in bed."

"That's okay…I have an idea of where he may be," Ike says.

"Well, if you find him, tell him he needs to get back into bed, alright?" Rhys asks. "He's healing fast, but I still think the rest would do him good."

Ike nods, thanks his healer, then makes his way out of the fort. Thanks to Rhys' healing staff and the help of vulneraries, most of the attack marks have faded. Still, Ike imagines there are still a few bruises on Shinon that he'll be able to make out, even though the sun is going down.

Ike walks slowly, quietly down a path he knows very well. He walked it just a few days ago - although if he hadn't, neither of them would be in this shape. He follows the well-worn footprints all the way to his father's grave.

And sure enough, perched beside it, is Shinon.

Ike approaches slowly. He's not entirely sure how Shinon will react to seeing him. Shinon's unpredictable like that - you don't know if he's going to ignore you, or if he's going to cuss you out, or if he's going to hold a casual conversation with you, or if he's going to suddenly pull out a knife and stab you right through the heart with it. Ike tries not to think about the last possibility.

"Hey, Shinon," Ike's voice comes out softly, but still loud enough to be heard. Shinon cocks a head in his direction, sighs, then mumbles, "Sorry" as he gets up to leave.

"No, Shinon, wait," Ike says, trotting to catch up to him. Surprisingly to Ike, Shinon actually stops and waits, slowly turning his head around to look at him. "Listen, I don't care about you hanging around Father's grave right now. From what Titania tells me, he was as much your father as he was mine. I acted stupidly…no, that's not even the right word. I lost total control a few days ago when I attacked you, and I regret it with all that I am. I want to ask your forgiveness, if you care to give it to me."

Shinon doesn't say anything, doesn't move, doesn't even blink. He just stares. Ike swallows, not knowing what he's thinking, but decides to continue.

"Titania's told me a lot," Ike says. "If it upsets you, it's all me, I asked her to tell me, and I apologize ahead of time. But…I was just curious, having known you my whole life and yet not really knowing you at all. I heard you were abused by your father."

He pauses, waiting for a reaction. He gets none.

"And that because of that, you ran off, and my father found you dying in Gallia," Ike presses on. "I, um…I don't know all the details. Father never told me about it, but…apparently he adopted you as a son. You were basically my older brother, my father's oldest son, and I never really remembered that. I heard…I heard that you took care of Mist and me a lot. You looked after us, helped raise us. Even after my father went mad and took my -…excuse me, _our _mother…and when he left to regain control of himself, you watched over us for a month, by yourself."

Ike pauses again. _Surely Shinon has to say something. _Still the marksman remains silent.

"I also heard that you were supposed to inherit the position I now hold," Ike spills, unable to hold it in any longer. "You were supposed to become commander. Father promised it to you. It wasn't supposed to go to me, it was supposed to go to you. And I heard that you lost it somehow. That's the part I don't know."

Ike looks at the ground for a moment, wondering where he's going with this. What if Shinon says absolutely nothing? What does he say next? When he looks up again, he notices that Shinon is fully facing him now, and is even a step or two closer.

"Everything you heard is true," Shinon says.

Nothing more. Simply "Everything you heard is true."

"Can…can you explain what it was like for you?" Ike stammers. "I mean, I only know this stuff from another source. I don't know what it was like for you…I heard we used to be really close, that I really looked up to you."

Shinon closes his eyes, pauses, then laughs quietly to himself and looks back at Ike.

"Looked up to me?" Shinon says. "You were just a blue-haired version of Rolf. 'Teach me this, Shinon,' and 'Let's go here, Shinon,' and 'Can we do this, Shinon?' You and Mist both. Wouldn't ever leave me alone."

"That explains why you're good with kids," Ike says with a smile.

"I hate kids," Shinon states bluntly.

"You love them and you know it," Ike laughs.

Shinon frowns and shakes his head, but Ike can see a hint of a smile tugging on the corners of his lips.

"You were always a snot-nosed little kid," Shinon says. "Greil loved you. Always got your way. He spoiled you rotten."

"And he didn't spoil you?" Ike cocks his head and stares skeptically.

"No, he trained me," Shinon says.

Ike stops, thinks for a moment. It makes sense, doesn't it? Shinon is not only an accomplished archer, but an accomplished fighter in general. He knows what he's doing. Meanwhile, Ike had a fun childhood and only started truly learning how to fight when he was fifteen years old.

"What was it like, living with your father? Your real one, I mean," Ike asks.

"What was it like?" Shinon snorts. "You go find someone to beat you daily, starve you, slaughter you with words and you tell me what it's like. It was hell and I had to get out. That's all you need to know."

Ike stares intently at Shinon's face and notices the hardness and bitterness etched into it. For a second, one brief flash of a second, Ike can see the extent of Shinon's pain through his eyes. He sees the eyes of a little boy who's terrified, who's crying, who's begging for an escape as the man who's supposed to love him brings a whip down on him, over and over again. He sees the hatred, the fear, the hopelessness, the pain.

Could Ike even survive a childhood like that?

The brief second is over and Shinon's face reveals the strong thirty-year-old man that he is. Yet Ike feels a scar tearing across his heart for the ugliness this man once had to endure.

"My father was your savior, wasn't he," Ike states. It's not a question. It's a statement of fact.

"He was my father and I was his son," Shinon says. "And one day we were going to become commander and deputy commander, and then after that, the title of commander was going to belong to me."

"Father promised it to you, didn't he?" Ike asks, his voice suddenly quiet. "What on earth would cause him to break a promise?"

Anger flashes in Shinon's eyes, although it's a strange kind of anger. It's not directed at Ike, nor does Ike feel it directed at Greil or anyone else. It's more like Shinon is angry with himself…but then again, it's not even quite that. There's something in him - a _part _of him - that Shinon is upset with.

Before Ike even realizes what's going on, Shinon tears his shirt off over his head. Ike takes a step back in surprise, wondering what Shinon's doing. Ike scans over Shinon's lightly-tanned body, his tight stomach, his strong shoulders…

And then he sees it.

Ike's heart leaps into his throat in shock, and for a moment, he almost feels like falling over.

"This is what broke Father's promise to me," Shinon spits bitterly. "This is what lost me my commandership."


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen**

_Shinon stares out his window, enjoying a beautiful sunset. Red and pink is streaked across the dark blue sky, almost as if someone painted it there. The crickets are just starting to hum their song. Normally their constant noise would annoy Shinon to no end, but tonight, it's beautiful._

_Shinon still hasn't gotten off his high of being told he's ready for commandership, and that was four days ago. In a way, Shinon can't believe he's gotten this far in life already. Just fifteen years ago, he was all out of hope, never expecting anything of himself. Now he's a strong twenty-five year old and he's ready for anything. _

_He's ready._

_Yawning, Shinon realizes how tired he actually is. He'd had a long hard day of training. He doesn't normally retire this early, but Shinon decides it wouldn't hurt to lay in bed for a little while. Pulling off his shirt, Shinon feels a gentle breeze coming through his window and playing on his bare skin. Shinon enjoys the feeling, but doesn't look down at his body. He's learned not to - it only depresses him._

_With a shake and a pull, Shinon's hair tie comes out and his long straight red hair flies around his back. The wind tickles it against his skin. Shinon's always rather liked his hair. It's silky, it's soft, and it doesn't smell too bad either. Shinon grabs a few strands and brushes his fingers through them to get rid of a tangle when his bedroom door suddenly flies open in front of him._

_Shinon gasps, his hands flying to the right side of his chest as he turns away. It's Commander Greil. _

"_Y-yes, Commander?" Shinon stammers, his fingers trembling as he pulls his hair down to cover his chest, then covers it again with his hands._

_There is no answer from Greil. _Oh goddess, please don't tell me he saw it. Oh please, oh please, oh please, oh please…

"_Shinon?" Greil's voice comes out slowly. "What are you hiding from me?"_

"_Nothing, sir," Shinon says, trying not to let his voice tremble. "I'm just…surprised. You know I don't like people seeing me with my hair down."_

_Greil's heavy footsteps approach him. _Oh please, oh please, oh please…

_Shinon turns slightly towards Greil, trying as subtly as he can to cover his chest. Greil's eyes look highly suspicious and immediately wander down to his chest. _Oh goddess, no, please…

"_Shinon, what are you hiding from me?" Greil repeats, only much firmer this time. _

_For the first time since his father, Shinon feels an overwhelming amount of fear. Greil can't see this. He can't. The secret Shinon's been hiding for so long. If he were to discover it now…_

"_Show me, Shinon!" Greil barks, grabbing Shinon's hands and jerking them away. Before Shinon can react, Greil sweeps Shinon's hair away and stares at the ugly, ugly thing on Shinon's chest. Shinon stares in horror at Greil's face, not knowing what to expect, not even really wanting to see._

"_What…is that, Shinon?" Greil states very slowly and very deeply. Shinon can't speak. He can't even get out a single sound. He wants to cover up his ugliness, wants to get rid of it somehow. For now, however, all he can think to do is swallow and try to back away._

"_What is that, Shinon?" Greil yells now, stepping right into Shinon's face. "Answer me!" _

_Shinon backs away, Greil keeping in his face, until he feels his back hit a wall. Shinon now has nowhere to go. He's trapped between a wall and Commander Greil's increasing anger. Still he cannot manage to talk. He can't bear to explain what it is. Greil's glare goes from Shinon's eyes to his chest, where he touches the ugly mark._

"_Is that what I think it is, Shinon?" Greil barks in Shinon's face. "Is that what I think it is?" _

_Shinon has lost all power to think. His hands simply wander up to his chest naturally to try and hide the ugly truth._

"_Why did you not tell me before?" Greil demands. "You should have told me when I first adopted you! Why did you not tell me this? Why do you have to wait until I promise you commandership?" _

_Shinon's words get trapped in his throat. For the first time in Greil's presence, he feels like a small child. He wishes he could just wave his hand and all of this would be over. Greil wouldn't care about the mark. In fact, the mark wouldn't even be there._

"_Why?" Greil shrieks, slamming his fist into the wall next to Shinon's face. Shinon jumps and flinches. Greil punches the same spot again._

"_Because I was afraid you'd react like this!" Shinon finally croaks out. _

_Greil lets out a roar, then grabs Shinon by the shoulders. Shinon freezes, unable to breathe for a moment. He closes his eyes and prepares to receive a beating much like the ones he used to get as a child._

_Instead, Greil releases him, swears to himself, and sinks onto Shinon's bed, burying his face in his hands. Shinon watches his commander from the corner, trembling and feeling ready to throw up._

_Minutes go by before anyone speaks again. To Shinon it feels like hours. He realizes his dream has just been thrown away. Life as he knows it has just been thrown away. The commander has been so proud of him up till now, and in this moment, one disappointment has thrown away all of those years. Greil is shamed of him. Shinon wonders if Greil will even keep him in the mercenaries, or if he'll just throw him out onto the streets._

"_Shinon, why did you never tell me you were Branded?" Greil finally lifts his face out of his hands, revealing sad, weary eyes. "I needed to know that before it ever got this far."_

_Shinon hugs his stomach and looks at the floor, ashamed at himself, ashamed at his stupid mark._

_Greil pauses for a moment, biting his lip and breathing deeply. It's a fully twenty seconds before he finally speaks again: "I...I'm sorry. That was horrible, for me to react that way. I never...I never let my anger get..."_

_Saltwater begins to well up in Shinon's eyes. As weak as he feels, Shinon tries to push them back down. It's bad enough that the commander found his mark, he doesn't need to cry like a baby about it and even further ruin his reputation._

_"It just...surprised me," Greil stammers, trying to explain. "Disappointed me. If there was ever one thing I never wanted to see..."_

_One tear escapes. Shinon turns his head away, hoping he can hide it better than he did his brand. _

"_You can't be commander now, Shinon," Greil sighs. "You know that."_

_Shinon feels as if every last bit of his insides has been torn to shreds. Every hope, dashed. Every happiness, destroyed. Everything he ever wanted, gone._

"_You promised," Shinon's voice comes out in a pitiful whine._

_Shinon hears Greil's footsteps coming toward him. He doesn't dare look up at first, but finally when Greil places a gentle hand on his shoulder, he gazes up into his face._

"_You can't, Shinon," Greil whispers. "I'm sorry for breaking my promise. I'm sorry."_

_Shinon bites his lip, swallowing through his tight throat. Within seconds, hopelessness turns into rage. Does his brand really matter? Greil isn't prejudiced! And he never breaks his promises! Shinon's skills are far too great to throw away now. He's been trained so well!_

_Shinon's birth father's smirking face flickers in his mind. _"I was right, Shinon," _he says. _"I was right about you._"_

_"Shinon..." Greil whispers, gently grasping both of Shinon's shoulders._

_"You promised!" Shinon shrieks, violently shoving Greil away from him. "You've never lied in your life and now you rob me of this? After all I've done for you, all I've been for you, you cheat me and stab me in the back? I thought you were different! I thought it wouldn't matter! I've obeyed you in everything, followed your every instruction, trained until I couldn't walk just to be the commander and warrior you wanted me to be - the position you _promised _me!"_

_"Shinon, listen to me..." Greil states calmly, closing his eyes in pain for a moment._

_"Listen? Why should I listen to you ever again? How do I know you won't just lie to me again?" Shinon continues. "You crushed everything I ever wanted! Am I so disgusting to you now? Does everything I ever did not matter anymore? All those missions that I successfully led, do they not matter? I'm just a disgusting, filthy Branded, aren't I? So filthy you almost struck me!"_

_"I never would have struck you, Shinon," Greil raises his voice over Shinon's, which quiets him down. "I...lost my temper and...behaved quite unnaturally for me. Every part of me wanted you to be commander too, Shinon. You're just about perfect in that position. Everything was so set, so planned out in my mind that...finding out you couldn't actually take it broke my heart. A man sometimes reacts in explosive ways when he is heartbroken."_

_"As if that justifies anything," Shinon spits, turning towards the door. Greil gently grasps his shoulders again, which Shinon quickly tries to jerk out of, but Greil holds him tight. Shinon tries to hold onto the rage, tries not to let his own heart break any further._

_"Just listen to me, this one last time," Greil speaks softly, gazing into Shinon's eyes. "After this, I'll leave you up to your own decisions, and whatever you choose, I won't stop you. I know your every impulse is to run away. That's your inner escape mechanism. When you are emotionally wounded, instead of fighting back with all the strength you have, you flee. Instead of trying to conquer your fears and your pain, you simply attempt to find a new place to start over, trying desperately to leave everything behind."_

_Shinon cannot keep a bitter face - it melts into grief once again. Fleeing is exactly what he'd planned to do - just pack his bags and never face this painful disappointment again. He's sure no one would miss him that much. No one ever does. _

_"I will tell you this truth, from the depths of my heart, Shinon," Greil says. "Losing my wife was the hardest thing I've ever had to go through. If I lose you as well...I really don't know what I'll do. If you run away, I'll have to live with a painful crack in my heart that won't heal until you return."_

_Shinon doesn't want to believe it. If he can just believe that Greil really doesn't care about him, then he can just file him away in his mind as another jerk he had to encounter. If he can just stop feeling the affection oozing from Greil right now..._

_"I love you, Shinon," Greil sighs, pulling Shinon closer to him. "In my eyes, you've always been my oldest son, and nothing will ever change that. Nothing you ever do will stop me from loving my child. That brand on your chest doesn't disgust me, Shinon. I love you just as much now as I did before. That mark changes nothing about how I feel. You and I both know you can't go on to be commander with it - but you will always be my son. Believe that."_

_Shinon loses all resistance as Greil pulls him into a tight hug. At this moment, he feels just like a small child lost in his disappointment, desperately craving Daddy's affirmation. Shinon tries to push past his suffocating feelings enough to think about his next course of action. There's nothing for him here anymore, is there? His dreams are over. No longer will any eyes look up to him, respect his authority, admire his position. He worked hard for years, only for it to be useless in the end. There's no need for him to stay._

_And yet, wrapped in Greil's arms, Shinon knows he can never leave the only place where he's loved._


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen**

Ike stares in shock and disbelief at the small yet distinct mark on Shinon's chest. It's a deep blue color, and resembles a cross with a large crescent moon right in the middle of it. In a daze, Ike finds himself coming closer to it, wanting to touch it. It doesn't look like Soren's mark.

"You're Branded?" Ike asks.

"My mother was a raven," Shinon mumbles. "She was my father's laguz slave in more ways than one and she died giving birth to me."

Ike continues to stare at the mark. He can't help it. This one is so…_different _from Soren's. As Ike begins to think about it, everything falls into place. _Shinon hating laguz, especially the beast tribe…nobody in Gallia helping him…Soren feeling uncomfortable around him…all these signs and I had absolutely no idea that Shinon was one of the Branded as well._

"So you've hidden this from all of us?" Ike asks. "But…can't a Branded sense another Branded?"

"Only if they are truly experienced enough to recognize it," Shinon says blankly. "Back when Soren and I first met, Soren didn't even know he was a Branded. By the time he figured it out, I could effectively hide the knowledge of my mark from him. It takes a bit of work, but one can learn how to do it. That Stefan guy recognized me immediately, though."

"I…I had no idea," Ike stammers, finally wrenching his eyes from Shinon's mark to his face.

"Of course you had no idea," Shinon frowns. "I went through hell and high water to make sure nobody figured out about it."

"But I still don't understand," Ike says, glancing back down at the mark without meaning to. "Why would being Branded keep you from becoming commander? Why would you even lose your position as deputy commander? My father didn't hold a grudge against the Branded. He let Soren join the team, after all."

"Commander Greil didn't know whether Soren was a Branded or a Spirit Charmer, but if you care to notice, Soren didn't have any leadership roles either," Shinon sighs, turning away. "It was only after you became commander that Soren got the role of tactician, a stupid move."

"What do you mean it was a stupid move?" Ike asks, feeling slightly defensive. "You've seen how Soren comes up with his tactics. It's his natural ability."

"And I was a natural deputy commander," Shinon turns back and growls. "I was a natural at leading. However, the thing about a mercenary group, or any kind of fighting group, is that people learn your name real quick. Nearly everyone in Tellius knows about you, Ike, and most of them know about Soren too. Half could identify Titania. The rest of us are just common mercenaries that tag along with you."

"I don't get what you're saying," Ike says.

"There are _very_ few people in this world, sub-hum-…laguz or beorc, who accept the Branded," Shinon says, his eyes boring into Ike's. "It doesn't matter how noble those few people are, the rest of the world hates us. How much work do you think a mercenary group would get if a Branded were leading it? How much do you think we'd get paid? We'd probably get spurned everywhere we went if I led the group and that's the truth."

Ike pauses and thinks. The world can't possibly be _that _cruel, can it? Not everyone would reject cheap labor just because a beorc-laguz cross led the group, would they?

"You don't have to tell the world you're Branded," Ike suggests.

"Yeah, like that's going to work," Shinon huffs, spitting on the ground. "First off, if we ever wanted work in a sub-human country, the sub-…laguz, sorry…would sniff me out immediately. It's alright if you have a Branded or two working as part of your labor. They'll forgive that. But they won't look at you twice if you're leading the force. A Branded doesn't even deserve to live. They shouldn't have even been born. I guarantee you, if you ever wanted to work in Gallia, you'd find people being iffy about accepting your work because you've got a Branded tactician. The Branded can't hold important positions. That's not their place."

"Alright, but assuming the Greil Mercenaries never leave Crimea, or go find work in Daein or Begnion…" Ike reasons.

"When Greil started the mercenary group, he wanted it to be passed down through several generations, Ike," Shinon says, his voice getting quieter. "He wanted it to survive for a while. The plan was, when Greil retired, I would become commander. Then when I started reaching forty, fifty years old, I would hand it down to someone else. Obviously people all over Crimea would know my name - and perhaps all over Daein and Begnion as well. Greil knew that. He also knew that the Branded age differently than humans."

"They do?" Ike asks. He's heard something about that, but never really understood it.

"Your little tactician is going to appear fourteen years of age for most of his life, Ike," Shinon cocks his head and stares down at Ike. "Me, I haven't changed a bit since I was twenty-two years old. Now what are people going to think when the famous leader of the Greil Mercenaries turns fifty years old and still looks like he's twenty-two?"

Ike looks down. He has a point…

"The grudge against the Branded is very deep and very widespread," Shinon finishes. "That revelation can undo years of good work. Then the name of Greil would be trashed and the mercenary group would have to end to avoid public shame. Greil knew that when he discovered my brand. So he had to make me a common mercenary. It's highly logical."

Ike swallows. None of this feels right. None of this should have happened. The Branded are worthy living beings just like the beorc and the laguz. There shouldn't be such widespread hatred for them. If everything was right with the world, if there were no silly prejudices, things would have turned out far differently. Ike wouldn't have been forced prematurely into the position of commander - instead, they'd have somebody experienced, someone specifically trained in that area.

And Shinon probably never would have gotten so bitter.

_Why does the world have to be like this? _Ike wonders. _Can they not see that things just can't work this way?_

"So I got the joy of becoming an unknown, after all that work to become a commander," Shinon shrugs, as if it doesn't matter to him, even though Ike knows it really does. "Just go along, show my expertise at the bow, maybe teach someone else how to use it. Protect you as you grew, as I promised Commander."

Ike looks up, surprised.

"You promised Commander you'd protect me?" he asks. "When I became commander, it seemed like you wanted Daein to slice off my head immediately."

"Yeah, I did, you didn't deserve to be commander, nor did you understand anything about it," Shinon states bluntly. "Commander threw away his promise to me and made his untested boy the next in line to receive it. Makes no sense. You didn't deserve it. And then Commander Greil had the audacity, after breaking his own, to ask me to make a promise to him."

"Well…" Ike pauses. "Eye for an eye, I guess. Greil didn't keep his promise to you, so you didn't keep your promise to him."

"What do you mean I didn't keep my promise?" Shinon frowns. "Go ahead. Explain what you know about the situation."

Without meaning to, Ike feels his cheeks blushing. Even during a deep, mostly-friendly conversation, Shinon is still intimidating and…

…_in command._

"Well, as I recall, as soon as I became commander, you and Gatrie took to the streets," Ike says, clearing his throat slightly and trying to sound as authoritative. "That doesn't sound like protecting to me. Not only that, you joined Daein, so you even fought against me."

Shinon pauses momentarily, looking at the ground, his ponytail spilling over one shoulder. Ike watches him, then notices his shoulders trembling slightly. _Is Shinon…crying? _Ike wonders. _Father always did so much for Shinon, and it wasn't because he was prejudiced against the Branded that he broke his promise. Father and Shinon were close. Perhaps Shinon is overcome that he broke his own promise out of spite. He was so blinded by his rage that he completely disobeyed the man who saved his life. I'd be pretty ashamed at myself too._

Shinon lifts his head to look back at Ike, causing him to blush again. Shinon isn't crying; he's laughing.

"The sad part is, even your little tactician didn't figure that one out," Shinon smirks. "Yes, I purposely sought out the Daein army. I wanted to join. Soldiers get to meet their commanders, after all."

Ike raises an eyebrow showing his confusion.

"I suppose you never noticed how you faced the least experienced Daein generals first," Shinon says, shrugging. "I mean, if Daein were smart, they'd send some of their top stuff to eliminate the problem. But no, they decided they'd show an unusual amount of mercy and send generals that were just about your level. Then as you got stronger, they would be forced to scramble through their troops, looking for someone experienced enough to face you. Ashnard's wonderful death games were in high demand when you were approaching Daein."

"What are you saying?" Ike asks quietly.

"I'm saying Daein was going to throw some generals way beyond your skill at you and somehow they were mysteriously…eliminated," Shinon says, tapping a finger against his lips. "While they sent the new, amateur generals to try and stop you, the bigger problem was a knife-wielder who was polishing off all their trained professionals. They spent precious time trying to find him."

Ike gapes with his jaw wide open at Shinon. _Shinon joined Daein so he could control their fighting strategies? So they would send generals at just the right skill level for me to defeat them and still grow stronger? _

_That's tactical brilliance there._

"You…assassinated the tougher generals and created a distraction?" Ike stammers.

"Who, me? Nah," Shinon waves his hand. "The deaths were all caused by a knife. I'm a master archer. There's no way I could have done it."

Shinon then reaches down towards his thigh. Ike follows his hand and for the very first time, notices a small scabbard attached to Shinon's leg. _It's high enough to where his tunic would cover it up. _Shinon draws out the knife, glances at a tree about a hundred feet away, then flings the knife at it. The blade deeply embeds itself in the trunk. Ike swallows. He had no idea Shinon could wield a knife well.

Then again, there's a lot of things about Shinon that he had no idea about.

"Then when you figured you did enough, you made sure you were one of the soldiers sent out to face me," Ike says, finally piecing it all together. "And you…you did let me win."

"I could've had three arrows in you by the time it took you to draw your sword," Shinon snorts. "Not that I wasn't tempted. A world-class archer doesn't lose to a rookie commander. But…I made a promise. So yes, I let you win. I assumed you were stupid enough to let me live, and you were."

A hint of irritation flashes inside Ike, but he decides to ignore it. After the surprising amount of favors Shinon has done for him, he can afford to be called stupid a time or two. It's just Shinon's way.

"So when my father died, you and Gatrie left immediately to do your work in Daein?" Ike asks.

Shinon pauses, and this time his face remains sober. The wind blows gently against the two men, as if to comfort them. Ike breathes it in, feeling refreshed. Shinon simply glances over at Greil's grave, staring at it for a little while. Ike imagines Shinon was just as devastated when Greil perished - maybe even more. Greil had saved his life, made him something. Greil was his father too.

"I wasn't ready to serve under you," Shinon finally speaks, his voice quiet and slightly pained. "I figured Greil had a few more years before the time came to retire. He'd teach you how to become decent and perhaps if he'd died a few years after he actually did, I'd be able to stomach your commandership better. I was still getting used to losing what I deserved to you. Then the Commander died unexpectedly and suddenly widdle boy Ikey took the reins. Between the death of a hero and having to take orders from a kid who didn't even want to be commander…well, I was angry. So I ran. Gatrie stayed with me till I dropped him off at Begnion. It only took a couple months to get back to my senses."

Silence fills the air, and the two men find themselves staring at Greil's grave. Ike can hardly breathe. He owes so much to his father - and yet he's never realized how much he owes to Shinon as well. Shinon, his master archer, his smart-tongued fighter…his big brother. Ike glances over at Shinon, whose eyes are now gently fixed on the grave. _Shinon's a big softie deep inside too, just like Soren, _Ike smiles to himself. _You just have to push past their blunt, jerky nature and find it. _

Taking a few steps behind him, Ike bends over and picks up Shinon's shirt from the ground. The night is starting to get cool. He walks back and hands it to Shinon.

"I just have one more question," Ike says, giving one last glance at Shinon's brand. "How long are you supposed to live?"

Shinon eyes Ike as he takes his shirt back and slips it over his head. "I think around five hundred years, but I'm not sure."

"Well, you'll be around for a while then," Ike says with a laugh. "You'll stick by me till I die, right?"

"Maybe I will, maybe I won't," Shinon shrugs, spitting on the ground. "I may have other things I want to do."

Ike smirks, pausing, then finally asking, "I know you don't owe me anything. In fact, I owe so much more to you. But can I ask you to make a promise to me?"

"Goddess, I hate promises," Shinon turns and rolls his eyes. After a large sigh, he turns back and asks, "What do you want?"

"Assuming I'll live to be a ripe old man," Ike says, "Can you be there when it's my time to die? You are my brother, after all."

Ike watches Shinon's expression carefully. Shinon stares at him for a moment or two, then lets out a small laugh, glancing back at Greil's grave and mumbling, "I guess I am." He turns back to Ike and states, "I'll see if I'm able to arrive. Don't hold your breath though."

Ike laughs, knowing this is about as close to a "yes" as Shinon will come. "I'm glad. Hey, just for old time's sake, you want to spar with me? I'd like to see how good I've become against one of my old trainers."

Shinon looks at Ike in surprise, mumbles, "Who are you calling old?" then flashes Ike a rare smile. "Well, I suppose we can if you want to."

Ike smiles back, cracks his knuckles, then says, "Ready when you-"

SMACK!

The next second, Ike finds himself on the ground from an unexpected backhand to the face. Ike groans, feeling his brain sloshing back and forth as he clumsily gets back to his feet.

"I taught you a big rule in sparring," Shinon says, his hands on his hips. "You may not remember sparring with me, but you'd better remember the rule."

"Yeah, yeah, always be prepared for anything," Ike grumbles.

"And if you get smacked in the face…" Shinon pushes.

"…It's my fault for not looking out for it," Ike finishes.

Shinon stares at Ike for a second or two, then laughs. "Not bad, kid. Not bad."


	17. Chapter 17 The Ending

**Chapter Seventeen**

_Shinon rounds the corner, taking a look around. This old Crimean town has been updated quite a bit through the years, but there are still some parts that retain its former charm. Looking up ahead, Shinon sees it, the small cottage he'd been searching for. It's a cute, quaint little building, surrounded by old oak trees to help with the privacy. _Privacy indeed, _Shinon thinks. _I barely found this place myself.

_His steps are slow and soft as he makes his way to the front porch of the house. The old wooden stairs creak as he steps on them. The porch itself doesn't act as if it can hold a lot of weight. Shinon's thankful for his slim body. _

_He reaches for the door handle, but stops, his heart suddenly slamming into his throat. Does he really want to do this? Does he really want to see what's inside? Shinon closes his eyes and takes deep breaths. There should be no reason for feeling nervous. Shinon never feels nervous. There's no time for nerves anywhere. He should just open the door, walk in, and deal with whatever he finds inside._

_Shinon's fingers brush against the door handle, then pull away again. He can't do it. He just can't. Turning away, Shinon starts to head off the porch, get out of here, when he stops again. Closing his eyes and clenching his fists, he scolds himself, _Come on. You came here to do this. You can't just leave now. What will people think of that? World-class archer, fought in wars, bravely protected the people, but can't walk through a stupid door.

Just do it.

_Groaning to himself, Shinon turns back around, grabs the door handle, and forces him to twist it. He feels his heart thudding against his chest, but he pushes open the door anyway and carefully steps inside._

_Flowers and soap immediately fill his senses. Shinon scrunches his nose. It's too clean a smell. After years of dealing with the scent of sweat, blood, metal, and death, the smell of soap nearly makes him gag. It's not a real smell. _

_Shinon's boots make a soft clumping noise against the scratched hardwood floor. He glances around and notices a small table with three chairs around it. It doesn't appear that anyone has eaten on it in quite some time, judging by the layer of dust on it. Shinon stops for a moment and looks at the walls. A large, shining, beautiful sword decorates one, while a strong, bold axe hangs on the other._

_Ragnell and Urvan. Shinon smiles. They still look as sharp and ready to use as ever._

_Entranced by the weapons, Shinon almost doesn't notice when an elderly lady wanders out of a room._

"_Oh!" she exclaims as she sees him. Shinon gazes at her, his throat closing up, suddenly feeling as if he wants to cry. _Bah, what is this, _Shinon scolds himself. _Crying just because you see an old lady? That's stupid and pointless.

_Still, his body doesn't respond to anything. It stays frozen and still as his eyes wander over the old woman. Her pale blue eyes are soft and friendly, yet still weary and low on life. Her hair is short and silver, shiny near the tips, yet oily at the roots. Wrinkles adorn every inch of her body. There is a small hunch on her back, and though they are clutching together, Shinon can see her hands are gnarled and malformed. She emits the universal smell of the elderly._

"_Shinon?" her weak, trembling voice squeaks. Shinon can see she's missing a few teeth, and a few of the remaining ones have blackened. Shinon swallows, trying to get his throat to open up enough to speak._

"_Mist, right?" he asks._

_The lady's thin lips smile, her head nodding longer than expected. "Come," she croaks. "Ike is this way."_

_Shinon watches in pity as Mist hobbles slowly, step by step, into Ike's room. _If this is how Mist looks, I don't think I want to see Ike, _Shinon thinks. Things have certainly changed since he and Ike last saw each other. Years and years before, when Shinon was a young thirty year old and Ike an even younger twenty, Ike had decided to give commandership of the Greil Mercenaries to Titania. He then sailed off to explore other lands, his faithful companion Soren by his side. Shinon hasn't seen him since then. It was only recently that he heard Ike had come back to Crimea thirty-five years before. _

_Slowly Shinon steps after Mist. The last time he saw Ike, they were both young and healthy. Now Shinon doesn't even want to see his former commander - and younger brother - as anything less. Ike is strong, brave, fearless. It would be a disgrace to see him old and feeble._

_Shinon closes his eyes as he steps into the room, taking a deep breath before daring to open them again. His face remains expressionless, but inside his heart falls to his feet. No, that man lying in bed can't be Ike. He's too thin to be Ike. His face is too worn to be Ike. He's too frail to be Ike._

_Yet studying him over, Shinon realizes it's the truth. He can see the hint of light blue in the man's piercing white hair. Although weak, the man's eyes are still passionate and caring, and his face is still stubborn as a mule. It makes Shinon laugh._

"_Shinon…you came!" a horrible rusty sound emits from Ike's throat. Shinon winces slightly. He hates seeing Ike like this, hates seeing him this old, hates seeing him fall apart…especially because Shinon knows he himself looks nothing like this._

"_I said I would," Shinon states simply. _

"_How old are you now, Shinon?" Ike croaks._

"_I celebrated my 103__rd__ birthday last week," Shinon says with a small smile._

"_Seriously? Why, you look…" Ike creakily laughs, pausing as he examines Shinon over._

"_Not a day over twenty-two?" Shinon suggests, glancing down at himself as well, feeling a little sick. His skin is still young and fresh, his body trim yet strong. His hands have never been better for using a bow. _

"…_fantastic," Ike finishes his own sentence. "Exactly as I remember you."_

_Shinon nods, semi-consciously tugging his ponytail over his shoulder. He can see the bright redness of his hair through the corner of his eye. _

"_I almost wish I were Branded," Ike coughs out another laugh. "Wouldn't it be wonderful to be ninety-…ninety…oh, however old I am. To be in my nineties and still look like a twenty-year-old. Even Soren hasn't changed a bit, and he's just about my age, aren't you, Sor?" _

_Shinon has been so focused on Ike's withering body that he never even noticed Soren sitting quietly in a chair beside Ike's bed. Ike is right - Soren is in every regard still a teenager, even in his nineties. His hair is still long, shiny, and black, his face youthful, his body tiny but not frail. For the first time in his life, Shinon actually feels sorry for Soren. The little mage is so attached to Ike, and when the old man finally passes, Soren still has a lot of life to live._

_Sighing, Shinon moves his eyes back to Ike. It's almost more pleasant to look at him, rather than the bitter tears of despair slowly falling down Soren's cheeks._

"_You know we're the last of the original Greil Mercenaries?" Ike states, his weary eyes moving between all of them. "All together again."_

_Shinon looks down. He hadn't realized it. Of course they're the only ones left. Ike was among the youngest when the mercenaries started. Everyone older than him - save Shinon himself - have all passed already, some earlier than they were meant to. Illness finally claimed Rhys at the age of thirty-four, and Rolf, who had become the leader of his own mercenary group, had been killed in action at twenty-nine trying to defend a village against a ruthless group of bandits. _

_Now Ike is on his death bed, and Mist will soon follow. It will just be Shinon and Soren, living alone for goddess knows how many centuries, waiting to see which one will become the very last of the Greil Mercenaries._

"_I have one more request to make of you, Shinon," Ike croaks, his breathing getting more and more shallow. "And of you too, Soren."_

_Shinon steps closer to Ike's bed and kneels beside him. Ike stares into Shinon's face for a moment or two, then slowly reaches his trembling hand to touch Shinon's ponytail. Although uncomfortable, Shinon lets him do it. The crooked fingers slide through Shinon's smooth red locks like a hot knife through butter. _

"_103 and your hair still looks and feels like that," Ike mumbles, bringing his hand back, then glancing over at Soren. "You two are obviously going to be the last of the Greil Mercenaries."_

_Shinon and Soren remain silent._

"_Adopt each other as brothers, will you?" Ike says, his voice fading fast. "Stick with each other. Don't let each other face the world alone. Who knows, maybe you'll both live to see the day when the Branded are finally accepted among society."_

"_Maybe," Shinon says with a smile. Among his travels, Shinon had visited Stefan in the Grann Desert. The rascal had just celebrated his 314__th__ birthday and had shown Shinon the ever-growing community of Branded in the desert. With the vast numbers, Stefan was even talking about creating his own country._

"_Can you promise me that?" Ike asks in a whisper. "Promise me you'll support each other until the end of your lives."_

_Shinon looks up across the bed, his eyes meeting Soren's. Soren bites his lip, tears pouring down his cheeks faster and faster. _He's just like me, _Shinon sighs. _He carries the same curse I do. He's faced the same punishment and rejection as I have. We're not so different.

"_Well, I don't know about Soren, but I'll agree to it," Shinon says, looking back at Ike._

_Soren chews on his lip for a while longer, seemingly trying to regain control of himself before squeaking out, "Yes, Ike. I promise."_

"_Good…" Ike breathes, closing his eyes. "I have always been proud of you both. Never forget that."_

_The minutes tick on forever, silence beating against Shinon's eardrums, before the old man's heart finally gives up. Mist tries to take Ike's pulse, but finds her hands aren't strong enough. It is Shinon who confirms that he's dead. Without a word, Mist hobbles out of the room, leaving Shinon and Soren alone. _

_Soren's tiny body trembles violently trying to hold in his sobs. Shinon can't bear to see the boy's suffering any longer. Quietly stepping over to his side of the bed, Shinon simply says "Brother," and opens his arms. Soren ignores them for exactly four seconds before collapsing into them and releasing his emotion. Though the sobs and tears are intense, they last only for a few moments. Even Shinon feels the sudden and strange calmness. Finally he looks down and discovers where it comes from._

_In Shinon's embrace, the brand on Soren's forehead lies pressed against the brand on Shinon's chest. They share the same blood, the same rejection…and the same peace when they support each other._

_For the first time in many, many decades, a single solitary tear slides down Shinon's cheek._

Shinon and Soren, having truly become new brothers, comfort each other until no more tears can be shed. Without words, their presences share in Ike's memory, and soon Soren opens up about his adventures with Ike. They eventually find themselves swapping stories, causing Shinon to open up in a way he never has before.

A few hours later, Mist passes on in her own bedroom. Deciding that both Ike and Mist would have wanted it, Shinon and Soren bury them beside their father, Greil. They hold a small, private ceremony, then continue on their way.

Sixty-three years pass before the Branded community is established. Within the next thirty years after, the Branded are able to live among beorc and laguz without fear of prejudice, hatred, harm, or rejection. Soren had never believed it to be possible, but Shinon saw it coming.

Stefan, the leader of the Branded community as well as Shinon and Soren's friend, dies eighty-four years later at the ripe old age of 491. He'd only begun to look middle-aged. The Branded community regards him as a hero and honors him at his funeral, building a monument in his name.

A few years later, Shinon establishes his own mercenary group, places it in Greil's name, and finally fulfills his dream of becoming commander. He enlists Soren as his deputy commander and tactician, and with a band of beorc, laguz, and Branded following them, Crimea goes without major trouble for centuries.

When both men are in their 400's, Begnion attempts to start a war between the Branded and the beast tribe of Gallia. Casualties are suffered and relationships are damaged. However, the legacy of the Greil Mercenaries lives on, and much like Ike during the first two wars, Shinon and his mercenary group conquers in the third. Relations are restored between the Branded and the beast tribe, and Begnion is brought to order once again.

Shinon finally passes away at the age of 602, making Soren the last of the Greil Mercenaries. Many mourn at the news, especially the Branded community, as Shinon was the first of their kind to establish a mercenary team. They insist on building Shinon a monument as well and burying him with Stefan. However, Soren buries his friend in private next to Greil.

Soren carries on the Greil Mercenaries long after, fulfilling not only the legacy of Greil and Ike, but of Shinon as well. At age 850, Soren passes the group down to a well-loved apprentice and travels all of the world, spending extra time where he and Ike hadn't been able to go because of Ike's aging and failing health.

On his 1,000th birthday, Soren wanders back to the Greil's burial ground. He places a flower each on the graves of Greil, Ike, Mist, and Shinon, then lies down in front of them to rest himself. He never wakes up again.

_Note from the author: This is the ending of this story. I hope you enjoyed it - refer it to your friends and ask them to review. I am always looking to improve my writing, especially because, though I did quite a bit of fiction writing in the past, the story is the only fiction piece I've done recently. Let me know what you liked about the content and my style of writing, and what I could improve. As much as I admittedly don't like criticism (heh heh), constructive criticism is very useful (as long as it IS constructive, of course...)._

_If you liked this story and might like to read more of my stuff, in the near future, I'll be publishing a one-shot split into four parts (meaning I'm posting it all at once, but it'll be split into four chapters since it's kind of long) about Naesala and everything that happened with him and his blood pact, entitled I Never Wanted To Be King. Keep an eye out for it and tell me how you like it._

_If you have any more ideas for stories you'd like to see, I'd love to hear them. I used to do a ton of short stories, so send your ideas to: live (underscore) to (underscore) lose at hotmail dot com (I think you should be able to figure out how that goes). Send me your ideas, or just chat. I'd love to talk with you. Thanks for reading, I loved writing this story!_


End file.
